
Class Shakespeariawt 

Book::ESj.ii^"5_ 

Entry Catalogue Number 

6\%..9.Xl 

C/ass 

PRESENTED BY 

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\ AN EPITAPH 

ON THE ADMIPvABLE DRAMATIC POET, 
W. SHAKESPEARE. 

(1G30.) 

What needs my Shakespeare for his honor'd bones, 

The labor of an age in piled stones, 

Or that his hallow'd relics should be hid 

Under a star-ypointing pyramid? 

Dear son of Memory, great heir of fame, 

What need'st thou such weak witness of thy name? 

Thou in our wonder and astonishment 

Hast built thyself a live-long monument : 

For whilst, to th' shame of slow-endeavoring art, 

Thy easy numbers flow ; and that each heart 

Hath from the leaves of thy unvalu'd book 

Those Delphic lines with deep impression took ; 

Then thou, our fancy of itself bereaving, 

Dost make us marble with too much conceiving ; 

And so sepulcher'd in such pomp dost lie. 

That kings for such a tomb would wish to die. 

John Milton. 



The foregoing lines, being probably tlie first of Milton's poetry to get into print, 
were prefixed to the second folio edition of Shakespeare's works, issued in 1632, and 
they connect, most honorably to both, the greatest of epic poets with the greatest of 
dramatists. 



SHAKESPEARE'S 



COMEDY OF 



THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 



Oi \ EDITED, WITH NOTES, 

HOMER Bf SPKAGUE, A.M., Ph.D., 

FOEIIBKLY PEOFESSOK OF ElIKTOKIC IN CORNELL UNIVERSITY, AND AFTERWARI>S 
PRESIDENT OF THE STATE UNIVERSITy^^^S^-NT»pH BA^OT^ 

OF THE MARTHA'S Ym-EA^iK^smkiiefrim'ih'^A ./^^^y^ 
CRITICAL COMMENTS, SUGGESTre^^UM&i&S^^W^FOR 



STUDY, SPECIMENS OF EXAMINATION PAPERS, 
AND TOPICS FOR ESSAYS. 



SILVEPv, BUEDETT & CO., PUBLISHEES, 
New York . . . BOSTON . . . Chicago. 

1895. 



V 






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•Prv^ 



Copyright, 1889, 
By homer B. SPRAGUE. 



iO 



2;d SM^' 



Nortoooti l^xtm 

J. S. Gushing & Co. — Berwick & Smith 
Norwood Mass. U.S.A. 



^ 



PEEFAOE. 



This edition of The Merchant of Venice is intended for the 
special needs of students, but it is hoped that the general reader 
may find it useful. It will be found to differ from other school 
editions in four important respects : — 

First, The notes, though copious, are all arranged upon the prin- 
ciple of stimulating rather than superseding thought. A glance at 
any page will show this. 

Secondly, It gives results of the latest etymological and critical 
research. 

Thirdly, It gives the opinions of some of the best critics on 
almost all disputed interpretations. 

Fourthly, It presents the best methods of studying English litera- 
ture by class-exercises, by essays, and by examinations. (See the 
Appendix.) 

We may add that, as in our editions of Macbeth and Hamlet, 
we have adhered more closely than other editors to the earliest 
approved texts, deeming it almost sacrilege to substitute our own 
words wherever a reasonable meaning could fairly be extracted 
from the old quartos or folios.^ 

It is impossible in such a work to escape errors. We shall be 
very grateful to any one who will kindly point them out to us. 

To make the student's mastery of these dramas easy, delightful, 
and complete ; to lead him to some appreciation of the wealth of 

1 In the text and in the numbering of the lines we have usually followed 
the admirable edition of Rolfe. His books should be in the hands of every 
reader of Shakespeare. 



6 PREFACE, 

Shakespearian thought and the beauty of Shakespearian expres- 
sion ; to enrich his vocabulary ; to store his memory with some of 
the choicest gems in literature ; and so to enlarge and multix^ly 
his sources of enjoyment, and lift him to a higher sphere of being, 
— these are the objects sought in this school edition of Shake- 
speare's plays. 



COI^TEI^TS. 



PAGK 

Introduction to The Merchant of Venice 9 

Early Editions. — Sources of the Plot. — Gesta Ro- 
manorimi. — Boccaccio. — Gower. — Barlaam and Josa- 
pliat. — Ballad of Gcrniitiis. — Pecoroue. — Orator of 
Alex. Silvayn. — Greg. Leti. 

Critical Comments 23 

Rowe. — Johnson. — Schlegel. — Ilazlitt. — Mrs. Jameson. 
— Hallara. — Campbell. — Heine. — White. — Knight. — 
Weiss. — Snider. — Dowden. — Hndson. — Morley. 

Explanations 36 

The Merchant of Venice 39 

Appendix : 

How TO STUDY English Literature ..,.. = . 163 
Martin. — Williston. — Buchan. — Fleay . — Hudson. — Kel- 
logg. — Blaisdell. — Thorn. — Meiklejohn. — The present 
editor. — Time Analysis. — Character Analysis. 

Specimen Examination Papers 174 

Topics for Essays 180 

Index , , . . 183 



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INTEODUCTIOlSr. 



EARLY EDITIONS. 



"The Merchant of Venice" stands last in the list of ten of 
Shakespeare's plays named in 1598 by Francis Meres in the Palladis 
Tamia. The first entry of it in the register of the Stationers' Com- 
pany was July 22, 1598, in these terms : >" A booke of the Marchaunt 
of Venyce, or otherwise called the Jewe of Venyse. Provyded that 
yt bee not prynted by the said James Eobertes, or anye other what- 
soever, without lycence first had from the right honourable the 
Lord Chamberlen." The proviso seems to have been intended to 
protect the Lord Chamberlain's players, of whom Shakespeare was 
one, from the unauthorized publication of a play then new. The 
Merchant of Venice was first published in 1600 by Roberts, and also 
in the same year by Thomas Haies. Both quartos were printed 
by lloberts. There were quartos also in 1637 and 1652. The first 
four folios appeared in 1623, 1632, 1664, and 1685. There was no 
reprint of it between 1600 and 1623. 

In Henslowe's Dian/, under date of August 25, 1594, is a record 
of the performance of " The Venesyon Comodey," marked as a new 
play. It was perhaps the first form of The Merchant of Venice. 
In that year the company of players of which Shakespeare was a 
member was engaged at the theatre of which Henslowe was chief 
manager.. 

The Merchant of Venice is said to have been played before James I 
on Shrove Siuiday,.aud again on Shrove Tuesday, 1605. This fact, 
if authentic, shows that it gave great satisfaction at court. The 
account of expenses, l)y the Master of the Revels, still preserved in 
the Audit Oftice, is as follows : — 

"By his Ma"^ Plaiers. On Shrousunday a play of the Marchant 
of Venis." 

" By his Ma*'^ Players. On Shroutusday a play cauled the Mart- 
chant of Venis againe, coiTianded by the Kings Ma''^" 

The name of " Shaxberd " as " the poet which made the play" is in 
the margin opposite both entries. But these are probably forgeries. 



10 INTRODUCTION. 

SOURCES OF THE TLOT. 

Stephen Gosson, a Puritan, in his boolv entitled Schoole of Abuse, 
in 1579, strongly condemns "Poets, Pipers, Plaiers, Jesters, and 
such-like cater-pillers of a Commonwelth." The drama in general 
is savagely condemned by him ; but he makes exception in favor of 
a few plays, one of which he names as " The Jew, and Ptolome, 
showne at the Bull ; the one representing the greedinesse of ivorldly 
cJiusers, and the bloody minds of usurers ; the other very lively de- 
scribing liowe seditious estates with their owne devises, false friends 
with their owne swoords, and rebellious commons in their owne 
snares, are overthrowne." It is not an unnatural inference that this 
may have been an early play combining the two stories of the cas- 
kets and the bond. 

We proceed to notice the old documents from some of which 
Shakespeare probably drew his materials. The earliest was perhaps 
the Gesta Ronianorum. 

The Three Cakes. 

[From the ''Gesta Bomanorum."'^'\ 

OF THE AVARICIOUS PURSUIT OF RICHES, AVHICH LEADS TO HELL. 

A certain carpenter, residing in a city near the sea, very covetous 
and very wicked, collected a large sum of money, and placed it in 
the trunk of a tree, which he stationed by his fireside, and which 
he never lost sight of. A place like this, he thought, no one could 
suspect ; but it happened that while all his household slept the sea 
overflowed its boundaries, broke down that side of the building 
where the log was situated, and carried it away. It floated many 
miles from its original destination, and reached, at length, a city in 
which there lived a person who kept open house. Arising early 
in the morning, he perceived the trunk of a tree in the water, and 
thinking it would be of service to him, he brought it to his own 
home. He was a liberal, kind-hearted man, and a great benefactor 
to the poor. It one day chanced that he entertained some pilgrims 
in his house, and the weather being extremely cold, he cut up tlie 
loo- for firewood. When he had struck two or three blows with 
the axe, he heard a rattling sound, and cleaving it in twain, the gold 
pieces rolled out in every direction. Greatly rejoiced at the discov- 
ery, he reposited them in a secure place, nntil he should ascertain 
who was the owner. 

Now the carpenter, bitterly lamenting the loss of his money, 
travelled from place to place in pursuit of it. He came, by accident, 
to the house of the hospitable man who had found the trunk. He 

1 An Enirlish version existed in MS. as enrly as the time of Henry TI. 
The original was probahly compiled toward tlie end of the 13th century. 



INTR 01) UG TION. 1 1 

failed not to -mention tlie object of his search; and the host, under- 
standing that the money was his, reflected whether his title to it 
were good. " I will prove," said he to himself, " if God will that 
the money should be returned to him." Accordingly, he made three 
cakes, the first of which he filled with earth; the second, with the 
bones of dead men ; and in the third he put a quantity of the gold 
which he had discovered in the trunk. " Friend," said he addressing 
the carpenter, " we will eat three cakes, composed of the best meat 
in my house. Choose which you will have." The carpenter did as 
he was directed; he took the cakes and weighed them in his hand, 
one after another, and finding that with the earth weigh heaviest, 
he chose it. " And if I want more, my worthy host," added he, " I 
will have that" — laying his hand upon the cake containing the 
bones. " You may keep the third cake yourself." " I see clearly," 
murmured the host, "I see very clearly that God does not will the 
money to be restored to this wretched man." Calling, therefore, the 
poor and the infirm, the blind and the lame, and opening the cake 
of gold in the presence of the carpenter, to whom he spoke, " Thou 
miserable varlet ; this is thine own gold. But thou pref erredst the 
cake of earth and dead men's bones. I am persuaded, therefore, 
that God wills not that I return thee thy money." Without delay, 
he distributed the whole amongst the paupers, and drove the car- 
penter away in great tribulation. 

APPLICATION. 

My beloved, the carpenter is any worldly-minded man ; the trunk 
of the tree denotes the human heart, filled with the riches of this 
life. The host is a wise confessor. The cake of earth is the 
world ; that of the bones of dead men is the flesh ; and that of gold 
is the kingdom of heaven. 
« 
[^From Boccaccio's '' Decameron" Tenth Day.'] 

The king conducted him then into the great hall, where (as he 
had before given order) stood two great chests fast locked, and in 
the presence of all his lords, the king thus spake : " Signior Rogiero, 
in one of these chests is mine imperial crown, the sceptre royal, 
the mound, and many more of my richest girdles, rings, plate and 
jewels, even the very best that are mine : the other is full of earth 
only. Choose one of these two, and which thou makest election of, 
upon my royal word thou shalt enjoy it." 

[From Gower's '■'■ Confessio Amantrs"] 

Anon he let two coffers make, 
Of one semblance, of one make; 



12 INTRODUCTION, 

His owne hnnds that one chest 

Of fine gold and of fine perie,^ , 

The which out of his treasury 

Was take, anon he filled- full : /' 

That other coffer of straw and mull, 

With stones meind [mixed] he filled also, 

Thus he they fitted hothe two. 

The courtiers choose the wrong casket. 

Thus was the wise king excused, 
And they left off their evil speech, 
And mercy of the king beseech. 

[jprom the Greek romance, " Barlaam and Josaphat," about 800.] 

The king commanded four chests to be made : two of which were 
covered witli gold, and secured by golden locks, but filled with 
rotten bones of human carcasses. The other two were overlaid with 
pitch, and bound with rough cords ; but replenished with the most 
precious stones and exquisite gems, and with ointments of the 
richest odor. He called iiis nobles together, and placing these 
chests before them, asked/ which they thought the most valuable. 
They pronounced those v>^ith the golden coverings to be the most 
precious, supposing the^ were made to contain the crowns and gir- 
dles of the king. Th^ two chests covered with pitch they viewed 
with contempt. Thcin said the king, I presumed what would be 
your determination : for ye look with the eyes of sense. But to 
discern baseness or value which are hid within, we must look with 
the eyes of the mind. He then ordered the golden chests to be 
opened, which exhaled an intolerable stench, and filled the behold- 
ers with horror. 

"In the Metrical Lives of the SaiJits, written about the year 
1300, these chests are caWed four fates, that is, four vats or vessels." 
— Warton. 

Gernutus, the Jew of Venice. 

[From Percy's "Eeliques of Ancient Poetry.'"^ 

THE FIRST PART. 

In Venice town not long ago a cruel Jew did dwell, 
Which lived all on usurie, as Italian writers tell. 

Gernutus called was the Jew, which never thought to die, 
Nor ever yet did any good to them in streets that lie. 

His life was like a barrow hog, that liveth many a day, 
Yet never once doth any good, until men will him slay. 

Or like a filthy heap of dune, that lieth in a hoard. 
Which never can do an}' good, till it be spread abroad. 

1 Precious stones. 



II 

His 

Yetb. 

And see, k 
This was the 

Within that cit> 
Which being distil. 

Desiring him to stand 
To lend to him a hundrec 

Whatsoever he would demanu 
" No," quoth the Jew with fleen 

"No penny for the loan of it for oi. 
You may do me as good a turn, before 

" But we will have a merry jest, for to I 
You shall make me a bond," quoth he, " t 

"And this shall be the forfeiture — of your ». 
If you agree, make you the bond, and here is 

" With I'ight good will! " the mercliant says, a. 
When twelve-month and a day drew on, that bac 

The merchant's ships were all at sea, and money v 
Which way to take, or what to do, to think he doth 

And to Gernutus straight he comes, with cap and be 
And said to him, " Of courtesy, I pray you bear with me. 

" My day has come, and I have not the money for to pay, 
And little good the forfeiture will do you, I dare say." 

" With all my heart," Gernutus said, " command it to your raind, 
In things of bigger weight than this, you shall me readj lind." 

He goes his way ; the day once past, Gernutus doth not slack, 
To get a sergeant presently, and clap him on the back : 

And laid him into prison strong, and sued his bond withal ; 
And when the judgment day was come, for judgment he did call. 

The merchant's friends came thither fast, with many a weeping eye, 
For other means they could not find, but he that day must die. 

THE SECOND PART. 

" Of the Jew's cruelty ; setting forth the mercifulness of the Judge towards the Merchant. To the 
tune of Black and Yellow.'''' 

Some offered for his hundred crowns five hundred for to pay; 
And some a thousand, two or three, yet still he did denay ; 

And at the last ten thousand crowns they offered, him to save. 
Gernutus said, "I will no gold: my forfeit I will have. 



J» 



je. 

ad, 

. thee to do so. 

is of flesh a pound, 
ot the man confound ; 

jere shalt hanged be. 
JO more than louges to thee : 

less, to the vahie of a mite, 
', as is both law and right." 

. mad, and wots not what to say; 
asand crowns I will that he shall pay; 

•m free." The judge doth answer make ; 
jenny given, your /or/ei^Mre now iaJce." 

ciand but for to have his own. 
ge, " do as you list, thy judgment shall be shown : 

pound of flesh," quoth he, " or cancel me your bond." 
hen quoth the Jew, " that doth against me stand ! " 

ing grieved mind, he biddeth them farewell. 
^ „ople praised the Lord that ever this heard tell. 

Good people that do hear this song, for truth I dare well say, 
That many a wretch as ill as he doth live now at this day; 

That seeketh nothing but the spoil of many a wealthy man. 
And for to trap the innocent deviseth what they can. 

From whom the Lord deliver me, and every Christian too, 
And send to them like sentence eke that meaneth so to do. 

The Adventures of Giannetto. 

[From the Pecorone'^ of Ser Giovanni Fiorentino, 1378.] 

[Grianuetto, an accomplished young man of Florence, had twice been presented 
with a fine ship and rich cargo by his affectionate godfather, Ansaldo, and twice he 
had lost the whole in attempts to woo and win a beautiful lady.] 

Poor Giannetto's head was day and night full of the thoughts of 
his bad success, and he could not put on a face of cheerfulness. 
When Ansaldo inquired what was the matter, he confessed he could 

1 First published at Milan in 1558. No English translation of it could have been 
Been by Shakespeare. 



INTR OD UC TION. 1 5 

iiever be contented till lie should be in a condition to regain all that 
he lost. " My dear child, you shall go no more," says Ansaldo ; " it 
will be better to stay here, content with the little we have left, than 
to risk another voyage." 

'Ciannetto told him he had made a firm ]"csolution to do all in his 
power to go again ; that he could not bear the shame of living in 
the mannor he must do. When Ansaldo found him resolved, he 
began to sell everything he had, and equip another ship; and so 
he did, and dispor'cd of all he was worth, and left himself destitute, 
to furnish this othet: tine ship with merchandise ; but, as he wanted 
still ten thousand ducixts, he applied himself to a Jew at Mestri, 
and borrowed them on condition that, if they were not paid on tlie 
feast of St. John in the next month of June, the Jew might take 
a pound of flesh from any part of his body he pleased. Ansaldo 
agreed, and the Jew had an obligaLion drawn, and witnessed, with 
all the form and ceremony necessary ; and then counted him the 
ten thousand ducats of gold; with whicu Ansaldo bought what was 
still wanting for the vessel. 

[Hia expedition this time is a great success. He ii arries the lady, who was a 
princess, and thereby he becomes a rich and powei-ful so 'ereigu.] 

He continued some time in this happy state, jvnd never had enter- 
tained a thought of poor Ansaldo, who had giy 'n his bond to the 
Jew for ten thousand ducats. But one day, as he stood at the win- 
dow of the palace with his bride, he saw a number of people pass 
along the piazza, with lighted torches in their hands, who were 
going to make their oflerings. " What is the meaning of this? " says 
he. The lady answered, " They are a company of artificers, who 
are going to make their offerings at the Church of St. John ; this 
day is his festival." Giannetto instantly recollected Ansaldo, and 
leaving the window, he gave a great sigh, and turned pale; running 
about the room in great distraction. His lady inquired the cause 
of his sudden change. He said he felt nothing. She oontinued to 
press with great earnestness, till he was obliged to confess the 
cause of his uneasiness, that Ansaldo was engaged for the money, 
and that the term was expired ; and the grief he was in, lest his 
father should lose his life for him : that if the ten thousand ducats 
were not paid that day, he must lose a pound of his flesh. The 
lady told him to mount on horseback, and go by land the nearest 
way, which was better than to go by sea; to take some attendants, 
and an hundred thousand ducats ; and not to stop till he arrived at 
Venice; and if he was not dead, to endeavor to bring Ansaldo to 
her. Giannetto takes horse with twenty attendants, and makes the. 
best of his way to Venice. 

The time being expired, the Jew had seized Ansaldo, and insisted 



1 6 IX TR OB UC TION. 

on having a pound of flesh. He entreated him only to wait some 
days, tliat if his dear Giannetto arrived, lie might have the pleasure 
of embracing him before his death : the Jew replied he was willing 
to wait, "bat," says he, " if he comes an hundred times over, I wilV 
cut oft' the pound of flesh, according to the words of the obliga- 
tion ! " Ausaldo answered that he was content. 

Every one at Venice who had heard of this aftair was Uxuch con- 
cerned : several merchants would have jointly paid the money ; the 
Jew would not hearken to the proposal, but insisted that he might 
commit this homicide, to have the satisfactio'i of saying that he 
had put to death the greatest of Christiau merchants. Giannetto 
making all possible haste to Venice, his ludy soon followed him in 
a lawyer's habit, with tAvo servants following her. Giannetto, when 
iie came to Venice, goes to the Jew, and (after embracing Ansaldo) 
tells him he is ready to pay tht money, and as much more as he 
should demand. The Jew s?id he would take no money, since it 
was not paid at the time due ; but that he would have the pound of 
flesh. And now this was ^ ery much talked of, and every one blamed 
the Jew : but as Veni''.e was a place where justice was strictly 
administered, and the Jew had his pretensions grounded on public 
and received forms, nobody dared to oppose him, and their only 
resource was entreaty ; and when the merchants of Venice applied 
to him, he was infl^-xible. Giannetto offfered him twenty thousand, 
which he refused; then thirty thousand, afterwards forty, flfty, 
and at last an hundred thousand ducats. The Jew told him, if he 
would give him as much gold as the city of Venice was worth, he 
would not accept it; " and," says he, " you know little of me if you 
think I will desist from my demand." 

The lady now arrives at Venice in her lawyer's dress ; and alight- 
ing at an inn, the landlord asks of one of the servants who his 
master was. The servant, having learned his lesson, answered that 
he was a young lawyer who had flnished his studies at Bologna, and 
was returning to his own country. The landlord, upon this, shows 
his guest great civility ; and when' he attended at dinner, the lawyer 
inquiring how justice was administered in that city, he answered, 
"Justice in this place is too severe." "How comes that?" says 
the lawyer. "I will tell how," says the landlord. "You must 
know that some years ago there came here a young man from Flor- 
ence, whose name was Giannetto ; he was recommended to the care 
of a relation who is called Ansaldo. He behaved here so well as to 
possess the esteem and aflections of every living creature, and never 
was a youth so well beloved. Now this Ansaldo sent him out three 
times, each time with a ship of great value; he every time was 
unfortunate : and to furnish the last, Ansaldo was forced to borrow 
tciu thousand ducats of a Jew, on condition that if he did not repay 



INTRODUCTION. 17 

them in June, at the Feast of St. John, the Jew might take a pound 
of his flesh. This excellent young man is now returned, and offers 
to pay an hundred thousand ducats : the wicked Jew won't take 
tijem, although the best merchants in the city have applied to him; 
but to no purpose." Says the lawyer, " This question may be easily 
answered." "If you can answer it," says the landlord, " and will 
take the tronble to do it, and save this worthy man from death, you 
will get the love and esteem of a most deserving young man, and 
of all the best mezi of this city." The lawyer caused a proclama- 
tion to be made, that whoever had any law matters to determine, 
they should have recourse to him. So it was told to Giannetto that 
a famous lawyer was come from Bologna, who could decide all 
cases in law. Giannetto proposed to the Jew to apply to this 
laAvyer. " With all my heart," says the Jew: "but let who will 
come, I will stick to my bond." When they came to this judge, 
and had saluted him, he immediately knew Giannetto ; but Giannetto 
did not remember him; for she had disguised her face with the 
juice of certain herbs. Giannetto and the Jew each told the merits 
of the cause to the judge : who, when he had taken the bond and 
read it, said to the Jew, " I must have you take the hundred thou- 
sand ducats and release this honest man, who will always have a 
grateful sense of the favor done to him." Tho Jew replied, " I 
will do no such thing." The judge answered, " It will be better for 
you." The Jew was positive to yield nothing. Upon this they go 
to the tribunal appointed for such judgments, and our judge speaks 
in favor of Ansaldo; and desiring that the Jew may stand forth. 
" Now," says he, " do you" (to the Jew) " cut off a pound of this 
man's flesh where you choose." The Jew ordered him to be stripped 
naked, and takes in his hand a razor, which had been made on pur- 
pose. Giannetto seeing this, turning to the judge, " This," says he, 
"is not the favor I asked of you." "Be quiet," says he; "the 
pound of flesh is nofryet cut off." As soon as the Jew was going 
to begin, " Take care what you do," says the judge; " if you take 
more or less than a pound, I will order your head to be struck off; 
and I tell you beside, that if you shed one drop of blood you shall 
be put to death. Your paper makes no mention of the shedding of 
blood, but says expressly that you may take a pound of flesh, neither 
more nor less ; and if you are wise, you will take great care what 
you do." He immediately sent for the executioner to bring the 
block and axe; " and now," says he, " if I see one drop of blood, 
off goes your head." The Jew began to be in great fear, and Gian- 
netto in as great joy. At length the Jew, after much wrangling, 
told him, " You are more cunning than I can pretend to be; how^- 
ever, give me the hundred thousand ducats, and I am content." 
"No," says the judge, "cut off your pound of flesh according to 



18 INTRODUCTION. 

your bond ; I will not give you a farthing. AVhy did you not lake 
the money when it was offered V " The Jew came down to ninety, 
and then to eighty thousand, but the judge was still resolute. Gian- 
netto told the judge to give what he required, that Ansaldo mighV 
have his liberty ; but he replied, " Let me manage him." Theii the 
Jew would have taken lif ty thousand. He said, " I will not give you 
a penny." " Give me, at least," says the Jew, " my owii ten thou- 
sand ducats, and a curse confound you all." The judge replies, 
"I will give you nothing. If you will have the pound of flesh, 
take it ; if not, I will order your bond to be protested and annulled." 
Every one present was greatly pleased, aivd deriding the Jew, said, 
" He who laid traps for others is caught himself." The Jew, seeing 
he could gain nothing, tore in pieces the bond in a great rage. 
Ansaldo was released, and conducted home with great joy by Gian- 
netto. The hundred thousand ducats he carried to the inn to the 
lawyer, whom he found making ready to depart. " You have done 
me," says he, "a most important service, and I entreat you to 
accept of this money to carry home, for I am sure you have earned 
it." "I thank you," replied the lawyer, "I do not want money. 
Keep and carry it back to your lady, that she may not have occasion 
to say that you have squandered it away idly." Says Giannetto, 
" My lady is so good and kind, that I might venture to spend four 
times as much without incurring her displeasure ; and she ordered 
me, when I came away, to bring with me a larger sum." " How are 
you pleased wiih the lady?" says the lawyer. "I love her better 
than any earthly thing," answers Giannetto. "Nature never pro- 
duced any woman so beautiful, so discreet, and sensible, and seems 
to have done her utmost in forming her. If you will do me the 
favor to come and see her, you will be surprised at the honors 
she will show you, and you will be able to judge whether I speak 
truth or not." " I cannot go with you," says the lawyer, " I have 
other engagements ; but since you speak so much good of her, I 
must desire you to present my respects to her." " I will not fail," 
Giannetto answered ; ' ' and now let me entreat you to accept some 
of the money." While he was speaking, the lawyer observed a ring 
on his finger, and said, " If you will give me this ring, I shall seek 
no other reward." "Willingly," says Giannetto; "but as it is a 
ring given me by my lady, to wear for her sake, I have some reluc- 
tance to part with it ; and she may think, not seeing it on my finger, 
and will believe that I have given it to a woman that I love, and 
quarrel with me, though I protest I love her much better than I 
love myself." "Certainly," says the lawyer, "she esteems you 
sufliciently to credit what you tell her, and you may say you 
made a present of it to me ; but I rather think you want to give it 
to some former mistress here in Venice." " So great," says Gian- 



INTRODUCTION. 19 

netto, "is the love and reverence I bear to her, that I would not 
change her for any woman in the world, she is so accomplished in 
every article." After this he takes the ring from his finger, and 
presents it to him; and embracing each the other, " I have still a 
favor to ask," says the lawyer. " It shall be granted," says Giannetto. 
*' It is," replied he, "that you do not stay any time here, but go as 
soon as possible to your lady." " It appears to me a thousand years 
till I see her," G-^iannetto answered, and immediately they take leave 
of each other. The lawyer embarked, and left Venice. Giannetto 
made entertainments and presents of horses and money to his former 
companions ; and having made a great expense for several days, ha 
took leave of his Venetian friends, and carried Ansaldo with him, 
and some of his old acquaintance accompanied them. Everybody 
shed tears at his departure, both men and women; his amiable 
deportment had so gained the good will of all. In this manner he 
left Venice and returned to Belmont. 

The lady arrived some days before; and, having resumed her 
female habit, pretended to have spent the time at the baths. And 
when Giannetto and Ansaldo were landed, all the court went out to 
meet them, crying, "Long live our sovereign lord! long live our 
sovereign lord ! " When they arrived at the palace, the lady ran to 
embrace Ansaldo, but feigned anger against Giametto, though she 
loved him excessively. Giannetto, seeing that his wife did not 
receive him with her accustomed good countenance, called her, and 
inquiring the reason, would have saluted her. She told him she 
wanted not his caresses. "I am sure," says she " you have been 
lavish of them to some of your former mistresses at Venice." Gian- 
netto began to make excuses. She asked him where was the ring 
she had given him. "It is no more than what I expected," cries 
Giannetto, ' ' and I was in the right to say you would be angry with 
me; but I swear by all that is sacred, and by your dear self, that I 
gave the ring to the lawyer who gained our cause." ' ' And I can 
swear," says the lady, wath as much solemnity, " that you gave the 
ring to a woman; and I know it certainly : therefore, swear no 
more." Giannetto said, if what he had told her was not true, he 
wished every misfortune to fall on him that might destroy him; 
and that he said all this to the lawyer when he asked for the ring. 
The lady replied, "You would have done better to stay at Venice 
with your mistresses, and have sent Ansaldo here; for I hear they 
all wept when you came away." Giannetto's tears began to fall, 
and in great sorrow he assured her that what she supposed could 
not possibly be true. The lady seeing his tears, which were daggers 
in her bosom, ran to embrace him, and in a fit of laughter showed 
the ring, told everything which he had said to the lawyer, that she 
herself was the lawyer, and how she obtained the ring. Giannetto 



20 INTRODUCTION. 

was greatly astonished, finding it all true, and was highly delighted 
with what he had heard ; and went out of the chamber, and told the 
story to the nobles and to his companions ; and this heightened 
greatly the love between him and his lady. He then called lY 
damsel who had given him the good advice the evening not to drViiK 
the liquor [which had tAvice caused him disaster] , and gave, her to 
Ansaldo for a wife ; and they spent the rest of their livens in great 
felicity and contentment. 

Of a Jew, who would for his Debt have a Pound of the 
Flesh of a Christian. 

[^From the Orator of Alex. Silvayn, Englished from the French 

in 1596.] 

A Jew unto whom a Christian 3ferchant owed nine hundred crowns, 
would have summoned him for the same in Turkey : the Merchant, 
because he would not -he discredited, promised to pay the said sum 
ivithin the term of three months, and if he paid it not, he was hound 
to give him a pouw\, of the flesh of his body. The term being past 
some fifteen days, the Jew refused to take his money, and demanded 
the pound of fles.i,: the ordinary Judge of that place appointed him to 
cut a just pounf. of the Christian's flesh, and if he cut either more or 
less, then his own head should be smitten off: the Jew appealed from 
this sentence, into the chief judge, saying : 

Impossible is it to break the credit of traffic amongst men without 
great detriment unto the commonwealth. ... In the Roman Com- 
monwealth, so famous for laws and armies, it was lawful, for debt, 
to imprison, beat, and inflict torments upon the free citizens. How 
many of them (do you think) would have thought themselves happy, 
if for a small debt they might have been excused with the paj'^ment 
of a pound of their flesh? Who ought then to marvel if a Jew re- 
quireth so small a thing of a Christian, to discharge him of a good 
round sum? A man may ask why I would not rather take silver of 
this man than his flesh. I might allege many reasons, for I might 
say that none but myself can tell what the breach of his promise 
hath cost me, and what I have thereby paid for want of money to 
my creditors, of that which I have lost in my credit : for the misery 
of those men which esteem their reputation, is so great, that often- 
times they had rather endure anything secretly than to have their 
discredit blazed abroad, because they would not be both shamed 
and harmed. Nevertheless, I do freely confess, that I had rather 
lose a pound of my flesh than my credit should be in any sort 
cracked. I might also say that I have need of this flesh to cure a 



INTRODUCTION. 21 

friend of mine of a certain malady, wliicli is otherwise incurable, 
or that I would have it to terrify thereby the Christians from ever 
abusing the Jews any more hereafter : but I will only say, that by 
his obligation he oweth it me. It is lawful to kill a soldier if he 
come unto the wars but an hour too late, and also to hang a thief 
though he steal never so little ; is it then such a great matter to 
cause such a one to pay a pound of his flesh, that hath broken his 
promise many times, or that putteth another in danger to lose both 
credit and reputation, yea and it maybe life and all for grief? Were 
it not better for him to lose that which I demand, than his soul, 
already bound by his faith? Neither am I to take that which he 
oweth me, but he is to deliver it me ; and especially because no man 
knoweth better than he where the same may be spared to the least 
hurt of his person, for I might take it in such a place as he might 
thereby happen to lose his life. What a matter were it then, if I 
should cut off his head, supposing that the same would altogether 
weigh a just pound? Should I be suffered to cut it off, although it 
were with the danger of mine own life? I believe I should not; 
because there were as little reason therein, as there could be in the 
amends whereunto I should be bound; or else if I would cut off his 
nose, his lips, his ears, and pull out his eyes, to make them alto- 
gether a pound, should I be suffered? Surely I think not, because 
the obligation doth not specify that I ought either to choose, cut, 
or take the same, but that he ought to give me a pound of his flesh. 
Of everything that is sold, he which delivereth the same is to make 
weight, aiic" he which receiveth, taketh heed that it be just; seeing 
then that neither the obligation, custom, nor law doth bind me to 
cut, or weigh, much less unto the above mentioned satisfaction, I 
refuse it all, and require that the same which is due should be de- 
livered unto me. 

The Christianas Answer. 

It is no strange matter to hear those dispute of equity which are 
themselves most unjust ; and such as have no faith at all, desirous 
that others should observe the same inviolable, the which were yet 
the more tolerable if such men would be contented with reasonable 
things, or at the least not altogether unreasonable : but what reason 
is there that one man should unto his own prejudice desire the hurt 
of another? As this Jew is content to lose nine hundred crowns to 
have a pound of my flesh, whereby is manifestly seen the ancient 
and cruel hate which he beareth not only unto Christians, but unto 
all others which are not of his sect; yea, even unto the Turks, who 
overkindly do suffer such vermin to dwell amongst them, seeing 
that this presumptuous wretch dare not only doubt, but appeal from 
the judgment of a good and just judge, and afterwards he would, by 



22 INTRODUCTION. 

sophistical reasons, prove that his abomination is equity. Trnl3% I 
confess tliat I liave siiHered fifteen days of the term to pass, yet 
who can tell whether he or I is the cause thereof : as for me, I think 
that by secret means he hath caused the money to be delayed which 
from sundry places ought to have come unto me before the term 
which I promised unto him; otherwise, I would never have been so 
rash as to bind myself so strictly. But although he were not the 
cause of the fault, is it therefore said that he ought to be so impu- 
dent as to go about to prove it no strange matter that he should be 
willing to be paid with man's flesh, which is a thing more natural 
for tigers than men, the which also was never heard of; but this 
devil in shape of a man, seeing me oppressed with necessity, pro- 
pounded this accursed ol^ligation unto me. Whereas he allegeth 
the Romans for an example, why doth he not as well tell on how, 
for that cruelty in afflicting debtors over grievously, the Common- 
wealth was almost overthrown, and that shortly after it was for- 
bidden to imprison men any more for debt. To break promise is 
when a man sweareth or promiseth a thing, the which he hath no 
desire to perform, which yet upon an extreme necessity is somewhat 
excusable ; as for me, I have promised, and accomplished my prom- 
ise, yet not so soon as I would; and although I knew the danger 
wherein I was to satisfy the cruelty of this mischievous man with 
the price of my flesh and blood, yet did I not fly away, but sub- 
mitted myself unto the discretion of the judge who hath justly 
repressed his beastliness. Wherein, then, have I falsified my prom- 
ise — is it in that I would not, like him, disobey the judgment of 
the judge? Behold, I will present a part of my body unto him, 
that he may pay himself according to the contents of the judgment ; 
where is then my promise broken? But it is no marvel if this race 
be so obstinate and cruel against us, for they do it of set purpose 
to ofiend our God whom they have crucified: and wherefore? Be- 
cause He was holy, as He is yet so reputed of this worthy Turkish 
nation; but what shall I say? Their own Bible is full of their 
rebellion against God, against their priests, judges, and leaders. 
What did not the very patriarchs themselves, from whom they have 
their beginning? They sold their brother, and had it not been for 
one amongst them, they had slain him even for very envy. Plow 
many adulteries and abominations were committed amongst them? 
How many murders? Absalon, did not he cause his brother to l)e 
murdered? Did he not persecute his father? Is it not for their 
iniquity that God hath dispersed them, without leaving them one 
only foot of ground? If, then, Avhen they had newly received their 
law from God, when they saw his wondrous worlds with their eyes. 
and had yet their judges amongst them, they were so wicked, what 
may one hope of them now, when they have neither faith nor law, 



INTRODUCTION. 23 

but their rapines and usuries? and that they believe they do a 
charitable work when they do some great wrong unto any that is 
not a Jew? It may please you, then, most righteous judge, to con- 
sider all these circumstances, having pity of him who doth wholly 
submit himself unto your just clemency, hoping thereby to be de= 
livered from this monster's cruelty .1 



A writer in the Jeioish Record of 1803 points out that " A wager 
like that of the Merchant of Venice was actually made between a 
noble and a Jew ; only in this case it was the Jew that was to forfeit 
the pound of flesh if he lost the wager," and the case was brought 
before Pope Sixtus V (1585-90), who decided for the noble on 
provision that he should cut oft' exactly a pound of flesh, no more 
and no less, on pain of being hanged. The noble declined, and the 
Pope fined both parties in heavy sums for making such a wager.^ 

Shalcespeariana, February, 1887. 

CKTTICAL COMMENTS. 

[^From Nicholas Roive, 1709.] 

I cannot but think it [The Merchant of Venicer\ was designed tragically 
by the author. There appears in it such a deadly spirit of revenge, 
such a savage fierceness and fellness, and such a bloody designation of 
cruelty and mischief as cannot agree cither with the style or characters 
of comedy. Tlie play itself, take it all together, seems to me to bo one 
of the most finished of any of Shakespeare's. The tale, indeed, in that 
part relating to the caskets, and the extravagant and unusual kind of 
bond given by Antonio, is a little too much removed from the rules 
of probability ; but taking the fact for granted, we must allow it to be 
very beautifully written. There is something in the friendship of 
Antonio to Bassanio very great, generous, and tender. 

[^Fi-om Dr. Samuel Johnson, 1765.] 

Of The Merchant of Venice the style is even and easy, with few pecu- 
liarities of diction or anomalies of construction. The comic part raises 

1 Gregorio Leti, in his Life of Pope Sixtus V, gives a very different version of the 
bond story. He makes a Jew, Samson Ceneda, the victim, and a Roman merchant, 
Paul Secchi, the stern creditor! The Pojfe acts the role of judge. The bond is 
evaded by the same quibbling technicality. The judge condemns merchant and Jew 
alike, the one for premeditating murder, the other for being accessory by selling his 
life! Finally the sentence was commuted to imprisonment in the galleys; from 
which, however, either might be freed on payment of two thousand crowns to a hos- 
pital then lately founded by his Holiness ! 

2 But see the whole story (in Percy's Reliques, 1765) from Leti's gossipy and un- 
trustworthy Life of Pope Sixtus V, translated by Rev. Mr. Farneworth in 1779, and 
quoted in Furness's Var. Ed., pp. 295, 296. For further traces of these or similar 
stories, see Furness. 



24 INTRODUCTION. 

laughter, and the serious fixes expectation. The probability of either 
one or the otlier story cannot be maintained. The union of two actions 
in one event is in this drama eminently happy. Dryden was much 
pleased with his own address in connecting the two jilots of his Spanish 
Friar, which yet, I believe, the critic will find excelled by this play. 

[From Schlegel's " Lectures on Dramatic Literature," 1809.] 

Shylock the Jew is one of the inimitable masterpieces of cliaracter- 
ization which are to be found in Shakespeare only. It is easy for both 
poet and player to exhibit a caricature of national sentiments, modes of 
speaking and gestures. Shylock, liowever, is everything but a common 
,Tl'W : he i^ossesses a strongly marked and original individuality, and 
yet we perceive a light touch of Judaism in everything he says or does. 
We almost fancy we can hear a slight whisper of tlie Jewish accent 
even in the .written words, such as we sometimes still find in tlie higher 
classes, notwithstanding their social refinement. In tranquil moments, 
all that is foreign to the European blood and Christian sentiments is 
less perceptible, but in passion the national stamp comes out more 
strongly marked. 

[From IlazliiVs " Characters of Shakespeare's Plaijs," 1817.] 

In all Shylock's answers and retorts upon his adversaries, lie hns the 
best not only of tlio argument, but of the question, reasoning on their 
own principles and practice. They are so far from allowing of any 
measure of equal dealing, of common justice or humanity between 
themselves and the Jew, that even when they come to ask a favor of 
him, and lie reminds them that on such a day they spit upon him, 
another spurned him, another called him dog, and for these courtesies 
they request he'll lend them so much money, Antonio, his old enemy, 
instead of any acknowledgment of the shrewdness and justice of his 
remonstrance, which wouhl have been preposterous in a respectable 
Catholic merchant in those times, threatens him with a repetition of 
the same treatment : — 

" I am as like to call thee so again, 
To spit on thee again, to spurn thee too." 

After this, the appeal to the Jew's merc}^ as if there were any common 
])rinciple of right and wrong between them, is the rankest hypocrisy 
or the blindest prejvulice. 

[From Mrs. Jameson's "Characteristics of Women," 1832.] 

Portia's surrender of herself in lieart and soul, of her maiden free- 
dom, and her vast possessions, can never be read without deep emotions ; 
for not only all the tenderness and delicacy of a devoted woman are 
liere Idended with all the dignity which becomes the princel}" heiress 
of Belmont, but the serious, measured self-possession of her address 
to her lover, wlien all suspense is over, and all concealment superfluous, 
is most beautifully consistent with the character. It is, in truth, an 
awful moment, tliat in which a gifted woman first discovers that, besides 



INTRODUCTION. 25 

talents and powers, she has also passions and affections ; when she first 
begins to suspect their vast importance in the sum of lier existence; 
when she first confesses that her happiness is no longer in her own 
keeping, but is surrendered forever and forever into the dominion of 
another! The possession of uncommon powers of mind is so far from 
affording relief or resource in the first intoxicating surprise — I had 
almost said terror — of such a revelation, that they render it more 
intense. The sources of thought multipl}'^ beyond calculation the 
sources of feeling; and mingled, they rush together, a torrent deep as 
strong. 

But all the finest parts of Portia's character are brought to bear in 
the trial scene. There she shines forth, all her divine self. Her in- 
tellectual powers, her elevated sense of religion, her high honorable 
principles, her best feelings as a woman, are all displayed. She main- 
tains at first a calm self-command, as one sure of carrying her point 
in the end ; yet the painful heart-thrilling uncertainty in which she 
keeps the whole court until susj^ense verges upon agony, is not con- 
trived for effect merely ; it is necessary and inevitable. She lias two 
objects in view : to deliver her husband's friend, and to maintain her 
husband's honor by the discharge of his just debt, though pa:id out of 
her own wealth ten times over. It is evident that she would rather 
owe the safety of Antonio to anything rather than the legal quibble 
with which her cousin Eellario has armed her, and which she reserves 
as a last resource. Thus all the speeches addressed to Shylock in the 
first instance are either direct or indirect expei'iments on his temper 
and feelings. She must be understood from the beginning to the end 
as examining, with intense anxiety, the effect of her own words on his 
mind and countenance; as watching for that relenting spirit, which she 
hopes to awaken either by reason or persuasion. She begins by an 
appeal to his mercy, in that matchless piece of eloquence, Avhich, with 
an irresistible and solemn pathos, falls upon the heart like "gentle dew 
from heaven": — but in vain; for that blessed dew drops not more 
fruitless and unfelt on the parched sand of the desert, than do these 
heavenly words upon the ear of Shylock. She next attacks his 
avarice . u gi^yioek, there's thrice thy money offered thee ! " 

Then she appeals, in the same breath, both to his avarice and his 
pity : .< j5g merciful ! 

Take thrice thy money. Bid me tear the bond." 

All that she says afterwards — her strong expressions, which are cal- 
(uilated to strike a shuddering horror through the nerves, the reflec- 
tions she interposes, her delays and circumlocution to give time for any 
latent feeling of commiseration to display itself, — all, all are premedi- 
tated, and tend in the same manner to the object she has in view. 

So unwilling is her sanguine and generous spirit to resign all hope, 
or to believe that humanity is absolutely extinct in the bosom of the 
Jew, that she calls on Antonio, as a last resource, to speak for himself. 
His gentle, yet manly resignation, the deep pathos of his farewell, and 
the affectionate allusion to herself in his last address to Bassanio — 

" Commend me to j'onr honourable wife; 
Saj' how I lov'd yon, speak me fair in death," etc. — 



26 IN TROD UCTION. 

are well calculated to swell that emotion, which through the whole 
scene must have been laboring suppressed within her heart. 

'At length the crisis arrives, for patience and womanhood can endure 
no longer ; and when Shylock, carrying his savage bent " to the last 
liour of act," springs on his victim — "A sentence ! come, prepare ! " 
— then the smothered scorn, indignation, and disgust burst forth with 
an impetuosity which intorfei'es witli the judicial solemnity she had at 
first affected, particularly in the speecli — 

" Tbei-ofore, prepare thee to cut off the flesh," etc. 
But she afterwards recovers her propriety, and triumphs with a cooler 
scorn and a more self-possessed exultation. 

\^From II(tU(un's ^^ Literature of Europe," 1837.] 

In the management of the plot, which is sufficiently complex witliout 
the slightest confusion or incoherence, I do not conceive that it has 
been surpassed in tlie annals of any theatre. Yet there are those who 
still affect to speak of Shakespeare as a barbarian ; and others wlio, 
giving, what they think, due credit to his genius, deny him all judg- 
ment and dramatic taste. A comparison of his works with those of his 
contemporaries — and it is surely to them that we should look — will 
prove that his judgment is by no means the least of his rare qualities. 
This is not so remarkable in the mere construction of his fable, though 
the present comedy is absolutely x>erfect in that point of view, and 
several others are excellently managed, as in the general keeping of 
the characters and the choice of incidents. If Shakespeare is some- 
times extravagant, the Marstons and Middletons are seldom otherwise. 
The variety of characters in TJie Merchant of F(g?i?ce, and the powerful 
delineation of those apon whom the interest chiefly depends, the effec- 
tiveness of many scenes in representation, the copiousness of the wit, 
and the beauty of the language, it would be sui^erfluous to extol ; nor 
is it our office to repeat a tale so often told as the praise of Shakespeare. 
In the language there is the commencement of a metaphysical obscurity 
which soon became characteristic : but it is perhaps less observable 
than in any later play. 

\^From Thomas CamjjheU's " Remark s," etc., 1888.] 

In the picture of the Jew there is not the tragic grandeur of Richard 
III, but there is similar force of mind, and the same subtlety of intel- 
lect, though it is less selfish. In jioint of courage, I would give the 
palm to Shylock, for he was an ill-used man and the champion of an 
oppressed race; nor is he a hyi^ocrite, like Richard. In fact, Shake- 
speare, Avhilst he lends himself to the prejudices of Christians against 
the Jews, draws so philosophical a picture of the energetic Jewish 
character, that he traces the blame of its faults to the iniquity of the 
Christian world. Shylock's arguments are more logical than those of 
his opponents. 

[From Heine's " Sammtliche ]Verl-e," 1856, Vol. V, p. 324.] 

When I saw this play at Drury Lane, there stood behind me in the 
box a pale fair Briton, who, at the end of the fourth act, fell to weep- 



ixTiioi) rc TIOX. 27 

ing passionately, several times exclaimins:, "The jjoor man is wronged ! " 
It was a face of the noblest Grecian style, and the eyes were large and 
black. I have never been able to forget those large and black eyes 
that wept for Shylock. When I think of those tears, I have to rank 
The 2Iercha7it of Venice with the tragedies, 

[^From White's Introduction to the Play, 1859.] 

We find, then, that the story of this comedy, even to its episodic 
part and its minutest incidents, had been told again and again long 
before Shakespeare was born — that even certain expressions in it 
occur in the works of the preceding authors — in Giovanni Fiorentino's 
version of the story of the Bond, in the story of the Caskets, as told 
in the Gesta Romanorum, in the ballad of Gernutus, and in Massuccio di 
Salerno's novel about the girl who eloped from and robbed her miserly 
fatlier — and that it is more than probable that even the combina- 
tion of the first two of these had been made before The Merchant of 
Venice was written. What, then, remains to Shakespeare ? and wliat 
is there to show that he is not a plagiarist ? Everytliing that makes 
The Merchant of Venice what it is. The people are pui>pets, and the 
incidents are in all these old stories. Thej^ are mere bundles of barren 
sticks that the poet's touch causes to bloom like Aaron's rod : they are 
heaps of dry bones till he clothes them with human flesh and breathes 
into them the breath of life. Antonio, grave, pensive, prudent save in 
liis devotion to his young kinsman, as a Christian hating the Jew, as 
a royal merchant despising the usurer; Bassanio, lavish yet provident, 
a generous gentleman although a fortune-seeker, wise although a gav 
gallant, and manly though dependent ; Gratiano, who unites the not 
too common virtues of thorough good nature and unselfishness with 
the sometimes not unserviceable fault of talking for talk's sake ; 
tShi/iock, crafty and cruel, whose revenge is as mean as it is fierce and 
furious, whose abuse never rises to invective, or liis anger into wrath, 
and wlio has j^et some dignity of port as the avenger of a nation's 
wrongs, some claim upon our sympathy as a father outraged by his 
only child; and Portia, matchless impersonation of that rare woman 
who is gifted even more in intellect than loveliness, and who yet stops 
gracefully short of the offence of intellectuality — these, not to notice 
minor characters no less perfectly organized or completely developed 
after their kind — these, and the i)oetry which is their atmosphere, and 
through which they beam upon us, all radiant in its golden light, are 
Shakespeare's only ; and these it is, and not the incidents of old and, 
but for these, forgotten tales, that make The Merchant of Venice a price- 
less and imperishable dower to the queenly city that sits enthroned 
upon the sea — a dower of romance more bewitching than tliat of her 
moonlit waters and beauty-laden balconies, of adornment more splen- 
did than that of her pictured palaces, of human interest more enduring 
than that of her blood-stained annals, more touching even than the 
sight of her faded grandeur. 

[From Knight's'" Pictorial Shakespeare," 1867.] 

Throughout the whole conduct of the play, what may be called its 
tragic portion has been relieved by the romance which belongs to the 



28 INTRODUCTION. 

personal fate of Portia. iBut after the great business of the drama is 
wound up, we fall back upon a repose which is truly refreshing and 
harmonious. From the lips of Lorenzo and Jessica, as they sit in the 
"paler day" of an Italian moon, are breathed the lighter strains of the 
most playful poetry, mingled with the highest flights of the most ele- 
vated. Music and the odors of sweet flowers are around them. Hap- 
piness is in their hearts. Their thoughts are lifted by the beauties of 
the earth above the earth. This delicious scene belongs to what is 
universal and eternal, and takes us far away from those bitter strifes 
of our social state which are essentially narrow and temporary. And 
then come the affectionate welcomes, tlie pretty, pouting contests, and 
the happy explanations of Portia and Nerissa Avitli Bassanio and Grati- 
ano. Here again we are removed into a sphere where tlie calamities of 
fortune, and the injustice of man warring against man, may be forgot- 
ten. The poor Merchant is once more happy. Tlie " gentle spirit" of 
Portia is perhaps the liappiest, for she has triumphantly concluded a 
work as religious as her pretended pilgrimage "by holy crosses." To 
use the words of Dr. Ulrici, " the sharp contrarieties of right and un- 
right are played out." 

\^Froin Weiss's " Wit, Humor, and Shakespeare,'^ 1876.] 

In the elements which compose the character of Portia, Shakespeare 
anticipated, but without intention, the intellect of those modern women 
who can wield so gracefully many of the tools which have been hith- 
erto monopolized by men. But the same genius which endowed her 
with a large and keen intelligence derived it from her sex, and, for 
the sake of it, he did not sacrifice one trait of her essential womanli- 
ness. This commands our attention very strongly ; for it is the clew 
which we must start with. 

She is still a woman to the core of her beauty-loving heart. Coming 
home from the great scene in Venice, where she baffles Shylock, and 
swamps with sudden justice the scales that were so eager for the 
bonded flesh, she loiters in the moonlight, marks the music wliich is 
floating from her palace to be caressed by the night and made sweeter 
than by day. Her listening ear is modulated by all the tenderness she 
feels and the love she expects ; so she gives the music the color of a 
soul that has come home to wife and motherhood, till her thoughts put 
such a strain upon the vibrating strings that tliey grow too tense, and 
tlireaten to divulge her delicate secret. So she cries, — 

" Peace ! Now the moon sleeps witli Endymion, 
And would not be awak'd." 

Her graceful passion takes shelter in the old myth whose names per- 
sonify her thought. And her style of speaking reminds us of the more 
polished ladies of Shakespeare's time, who delighted in the masques 
and revels in which the persons of the old mytholog}'^ were charged to 
utter gallant sentiments. She is a woman of Juliet's clime, and not 
Avithout her frankness; but she has been brought up in England, and 
her feeling and her judgment are P^nglish tlirough and through. 

She has been forbidden by her father's testament to make free choice 
of the man whom she will love. But she could as soon be divested of 



INTROD UCTION. 3 1 

her intellect as of her power and wish to love. There is not a single 
drop running through all her fairness that has caught a chill from 
the quarter of her brain where wit and wisdom ponder in their clear 
north light. Her mind is strong, but not the mind of a man, and 
with no traits more masculine than her frame itself, which is love's 
solicitor : — 

" Here are sever'd lips, 
Parted with sugar breatli." 

And even in her strict speech to Shylock we can feel the light draught 
of it, tempering the inclemency of her superb and vmexpected threat. 
The Jew quails under the sentences which rain on hin), golden, grave, 
serene. And they compel us to observe that pure sex has given the 
pitch to her strong, fatal wisdom. We cannot detect any thin and 
stridulous quality, like that of the well-gristled Duchess of Gloster, 
who repaid a box on the ear with these two lines : — 

" Could I come near your beauty with my nails, 
I'd set my ten counnaudmenls in your face." 

If among the points of a well-nurtured woman there be those that 
are feline, they are generally retracted into velvet sheaths, and scarce 
surmised to be there till a scratch is made so silently that you have no 
evidence of it but your blood. But if Old Probabilities should over- 
hear a woman blustering in a fashion as follows, — 

" Though in this place most master wear no breeches, 
She shall not strike Dame Eleanor unreveng'd," — 

he would at once order cautionary signals. When a man scolds in the 
pulpit, or a woman on the platform, the planets shudder, shrink, and 
grow more crusty. 

Bassanio had caught a throb from the soft breath of Portia which 
seemed to be a herald of the beauty he describes afterwards, when the 
lucky lid is lifted, — 

" Here in her hairs 
The painter plays the spider, and hath woven 
A golden mesh t' entrap the hearts of men, 
Faster than gnats in cobwebs; but her eyes! 
How could he see to do them? Having made one, 
Methinks, it should have power to steal both his, 
And leave itself unfurnish'd." 

She knows that this portrait of herself lies in the leaden casket ; so 
that whenever a suitor comes to speculate upon the chance of finding 
it, how that sweet breath must break into flurries of dread which call 
into the eyes a distant alarm! For, before her father died, she had 
seen Bassanio, and secretly preferred him ; and we hear him. tell An- 
tonio in confidence that 

" Sometimes from her eyes 
I did receive fair, speechless messages," 

No doubt he did ; but they escaped to him just like prisoners' glances 
that are in vague quest of some confederate instinct, and slip through 



28 



INTRODUCTION. 



a grating ; for she was double-locked in durance of shyness and enforced 
seclusion, and, in " terms of choice," could not be 

" Solely led 
By nice direction of a maiden's eyes; " 

kept aloof and held sacred by an oath to a dying father, yet so perfectly 
a woman that too little rather than too much betrayed her; for, as she 
says, "A maiden hath no tongue but tliought." 

The princely suitors file before the caskets, pondering how to match 
her picture with herself. She has all the captivating glamour of a j)ure 

blonde. 

" Her sunnjr locks 
» Hang on her temple like a golden fleece; 

Which makes her seat of Belmont, Colchos' strand. 

And many Jasons come in quest of her." 

While these Jasons agitate her heart by deliberating over the metals 
of the caskets, the real suitor lies hidden underneath the lead of lier 
manner, and seems to stretch forth a forbidding hand. To the Prince 
of Arragon, while the cornets relieve her by executing all the flourish, 
she coldly says, — 

" Behold, there stand the caskets, noble prince; 
If you choose that wherein I am contain'd. 
Straight shall our nuptial rites be solemnized; 
But if you fail, without more speech, my lord, 
You must be gone from hence immediately." 

Tliis is much more curt than the style of her address to the Emperor 
of Morocco, Avho, although wearing " the shadow'd livery of the bur- 
nish'd sun," had something too of its warmth and openness in the 
manner of his wooing. 

" I would not change this hue, 
Except to steal your thoughts, my gentle queen." 

That went straight to her woman's heart. "I am black, but fair," 
it said; and, like Desderaona, she could see "Othello's visage in his 
mind." But Desdemona's heart was fancy-free. Portia not only had 
a mind tliat could not be fancy-led, but her heart was lying in Bassa- 
nio's hand, where its life woke, like the gem whose color kindles better 
at the touch of warmth. Still, the recognition of the Emperor's frank 
passion came forth, toned at once by respect and courtesy : — 

" If my father had not scanted me. 
And hedg'd me by his wit, to yield myself 
His wife, who wins me by that means I told you. 
Yourself, renowned prince, then stood as fair 
As any comer I have look'd on yet." 

She may safely say as much as that. And when he fails, she 
smoothes his exit from her mind by the kind phrase, "a gentle rid- 
dance." Then she marks the difference between the women whose 
hearts can reflect and the Desdemona's of mere sentiment. The 
former have a firm partition that prevents the mingling of venous 



IN TR OB UC TTON. 3 1 

and arterial Llootl : this in the latter has never been quite closed, or 
is too thin, and liable to be ruptured by emotion. So Desdemona, 

" A maiden never bold, 
Of spirit so still and quiet that ber motion 
Blusb'd at berself," 

broke, as she said, into " downright violence and scorn of fortunes." 
She " did love the Moor to live with him." Portia, on the contrary, 
says, "Let all of his complexion choose me so," — it is a hint of the 
natural aversion of all natures Avho are representatives of one distinct 
type from mixing their love with those of another. But I cannot 
agree with a criticism of John Quincy Adams to the effect that Shake- 
speare wrote the tragedy of Othello on i)uri)ose to show the disas- 
trous consequences of miscegenation. Desdemona's weak point is the 
only fatality in the play. She began by deceiving her father, and 
secretly made a match which broke his heart. But if she had not 
recurred to deceit again, and lied to her husband about the handker- 
chief, his smouldering jealousy would have never blazed. Want of 
frankness was her contribution to lago's plot, the element that made 
it a success. Portia stood to her oath, and ran all risks. 

Portia has the strong sense to expect that the majority of her noble 
admirers will be taken by appearance. She is not quite sure, but has an 
instinct, that these gentlemen who are after her are also after her prett}' 
property of Belmont, and will be likely to clioose the metals respon- 
sive to this temper. Bassanio frankly acknowledges to a friend that 
he would like to repair his broken fortunes; but Shakespeare shows 
him to be a lover before he gives this mercenary hint, and he has rea- 
son to surmise that Portia loves him. This unspoken mutuality digni- 
fies his quest; as if Shakespeare himself would not admit the charge 
that he is a fortune-lmnter. And it is noticeable how little consequence 
we attach to Bassanio's character. 

We do not care to see him in any action, or to have him show a 
worthiness to be Portia's lover. He is but the lay-figure of her love ; 
there is so much of her that there must be a great deal of him, and he 
may be spared the trouble of appearing at full length. And we never 
suspect her of belonging to that tribe of bright women who, either 
from instinct or calculation, marry good-natured, well-mannered num- 
skulls, and never have reason to sue for a divorce. Shakespeare en- 
nobles Bassanio when the divining soul sees through the leaden lid. 
But what if one of the other suitors should also have a noble heart 
whose pulses feed discernment, one as fine and unconventional as her- 
self! There is just hazard enough to affront her cherishing of the 
absent Bassanio. She does not relish the moment when her heart, 
richer than the princes know of, goes into the lottery. However, when 
her father made his will, it doubtless occurred to her that his choice of 
metals came from a life's experience of the calibre of the average 
man, and was meant affectionately to protect her till the true gentle- 
man should come. As Nerissa says, "Your father was ever virtuous ; 
and holy men at their death have good inspirations ; therefore, the 
lottery that he hath devised in these three chests of gold, silver, and 
Igad (whereof who chooses his meaning chooses you) will, no doubt, 



3 2 INTR OD UC TION. 

never be chosen by any rightly but one whom you shall rightly 
love." Fortunate is the man Avho wins a wife because he chooses 
Heaven's meaning in a woman ! Luckless the wife who is not chosen 
by some implied Heaven in a man ! 

The wi'itten scrolls, which are enclosed in the caskets, show that her 
father anticipated acutely the ordinary motives of mankind. The 
suitors imagine that they are reflecting in a superior style as they 
give their reasons for taking to the gold or the silver ; but they are 
really biased by the common sentiment, as Portia sees : — ■ 

" Oh, these dehberate fools ! When they do choose, 
They have the wisdom by their wit to lose." 

So one by one they slaughter themselves and clear the Avay. 

How Shakespeare's verse celebrates Bassanio's approach to Bel- 
mont ! It is like a gracious prelude conceived by her secret prefer- 
ence, escaping to guide him to her Avliere she lies under a spell which 
he must break. 

There enters a messenger sumptuous in blank verse, like the tabard 
of a herald whose message is desired. 

"Madam, there is alighted at yonr gate 
A young Venetian, one that comes before 
To signify the approacliiug of his lord. 
... I have not seen 
So likely an ambassador of love : 
A. day in April never came so sweet. 
To show how costly summer was at hand, 
As this fore-spurrer comes before liis lord." 

The lover has reached the enchanted palace, and is in haste to liberate 
its inmate. Portia might have said, with the antique grace that always 
clothes her speech, that he came to attack, like a new Perseus, those 
menacing metals which rivet her in reach of danger, to lift her passion- 
ately out of fetters. How she struggles not to show her love, and thus 
she shows it ! — 

" There's something tells me (but it is not love) 

I would not lose you; and you know yourself 

Hate counsels not in such a quality." 

An ordinary woman might have enmeshed him in a cocoon of delicate 
coquetries ; any woman dead in love, and a little less than strict to an 
oath, Avould have managed in some way to provoke that lead casket 
into twinkling a hint to him. But she is too honest for either. A woman 
with a soul as tender as it is firm, here she stands dismayed as Destiny 
is about to rattle its dice upon heart : happiness and a future worthy 
of her, all at stake. For though her mental resources might compete 
with any fate, she is all woman, made to be a wife, and without wife- 
hood to feel herself at one essential point impaired, — all the more de- 
frauded because so well endowed. How she clings for support to the 
few moments that yet stand before his choice ! She wishes there were 
more of them to stay her. 

"I pray you tarry; . . . 

. . . for, in choosing wrong, 
I lose your company ; therefore, forbear a while." 



INTRODUCTION. 33 

She has no courage now : love, when it stole her heart, found that 
trait too, and added it to the booty. 

" Lest you should not undorstand me well 
(And yet a maiden Iiatli no tongue but thought), 
I would detain you here some mouth or two, 
Before you venture for me." 

The noble lady's plea fills us with admiring pity ; we admire to see the 
strong, beautiful woman so downcast Avith this new emotion which 
Heaven has quartered upon her life ; but we pity, because perhaps it 
will be doomed to dwell alone. And then the more si)acious the lodg- 
ing, the more dreary the echoes of these few sweet hours. 

Has she said too much "? She has a chase after this frankness to 
make a struggle to detain it, but it overcomes and gets away : — 

" Beshrew your eyes, „ .- ,. 
They have o'erlook'd me, and dividodmt': 

One half of me is yours, the oth^f^half j'Qu^^.— ^ ^ , 

Mine own, I would say ; but, ifjmineytlfxQn yours, "* -< "^ 
And so all yours! " I'oV A * 

This freshet of disclosure does not cai^y aw£l5^ oiMden^ re»e*)Vje, Jor \ 
that is transferred from her person, ancF'l'^ked up in tlie cby4\o«p o^CJ 
the caskets ; in them there lurks a threap %<^ossible dSsftster, which * 
lends some pathos to her frankness, and preV«Ms^if firom forfeiting^ dgLr/^-^ 

respect. ^^"^^'^^ir —'^ ^ lJ^ii-^>^ 

Now Bassanio, who lives upon the rack, denies lier°'|j!ieft~ie>¥^^iay : 
'' Let me to my fortune and the caskets." How profoundly she sur- 
mises that music might lull the watching Fate, so that he could pass to 
his Eurydice ! She bids the music play : — 

" As are those dulcet sounds in break of day, 
That ci'eep into the dreaming bridegroom's ear, 
And summon him to marriage." 

Bassanio must be attempered to his choice ; the song's key must have 
an instinct to the proper casket's key. Unconsciously she breaks her 
oath ; for what benign influence selected the song that is now sung ? 
Some star, whose tenant was her father ? Or was it Nerissa's doing, 
who determined to convey a hint to the lover ? Or did Gratiano hit 
upon it, who had got from Nerissa a promise of her love if the choice 
went to suit her "? A hint, indeed ! It is the very breadth of broad- 
ness, and a lover is not dull. 

" Tell me, whei"e is fancy bred, — 
Or in the heart, or in the head ? 
How begot, how nourished ? 

Reply, reply. 
It is engender'd in the eyes. 
With gazing fed ; and fancy dies 
In the cradle where it lies. 
Let us all ring fancy's knell : 
I'll begin it, — Ding, dong, bell, 

Ding, dong, bell." 

4 song that did good sexton-service, for fancy's knell is rung indeed. 



34 INTRODUCTION. 

The strain reminds Bassanio of notices in his experience : that error 
liides its grossness in ornament ; vice assumes some mark of virtue ; 
beauty is for sale by the weight, and is a show which cunning jjuts on 
to entrap Avise men : in short, as the song says, fancies come by gazing, 
liave no life deeper than tlie eyes, and die where they are born. The 
strain wakes up his mind into its noblest attitude. " So may the out- 
ward shows be least tliemselves." This fortune-hunter, after all, is 
Portia's counterpart. The melody woven out of air glides into his 
hand, and becomes a clue to bliss. Oli, the woman thrills! in touching 
the lead his hand has clutched her heart, and forces from her words 
that are outbreaks of that which is everlastingly the Woman. They 
assail, they challenge man to say what is so great as love. This 
polished, clear, sagacious, gifted, balanced woman dares man to say 
love is not greatest of all. 

" How all the other passions fleet to air, 
As doubtful thoughts and rash embrac'd despair, 
And shudd'ring fear, and green-ey'd jealousy! 

love, 

Be moderate, allay thy ecstacy; 
In measure rein thy joy, scant this excess. 

1 feel too much thy blessing; malie it less, 
For fear I surfeit." 

Thus the lips which an oath had sealed melt apart in the first kiss, 
and her heart, like a fluid ruby, rushes through. 

\_From Dr. Denton J. Snider's " Sijstem of Shakesjieare's Dramas," 1877.] 

The general movement of the play lies in the conflict between the 
Kight of Property and the Existence of the Individual, and in the 
Mediation of this conflict through the Family, which owes its origin 
in the present case to that same individual whom it rescues. That 
is, the Family, represented by Portia, the wife, returns and saves the 
man who aided, by his frieiidship and generosity, to bring it into being. 
All the characters of the play, though possessing peculiarities of their 
own, must be seen in their relation to this fundamental theme of the 
work. 

[^From Doioden's " Shakspere Primer," 1878.] 

The distinction of Portia among Shakespeare's women is the union 
in her nature of high intellectual powers and decision of will with a 
heart full of ardor and of susceptibility to romantic feelings. Slie 
has herself never known trouble or sorrow, but prosperity has left her 
generous and quick in sympathy. Her noble use of wealth and joyous 
life, surrounded with flowers and fountains and marble statues and 
music, stands in contrast over against the hard, sad, and contracted 
life of Shylock, one of a persecuted tribe, absorbed in one or two nar- 
f owing and intense passions — the love of the money-bags he clutches 
And yet fails to keep, and his hatred of the man who had scorned 
his tribe, insulted his creed, and diminished his gains. Yet Shylock 
is not like Marlowe's Jew, Barabas, a preternatural monster. Wolf- 



INTR OD UO TION. 3 5 

like as his revenge sliows liim, we pity his joyless, solitary life : and 
when, ringed round in the trial scene with hostile force, he stands firm 
upon his foothold of the law, there is something sublime in his tenacity 
of passion and resolve. But we feel that it is right that this evil 
strength should be utterly crushed and quelled, and Avhen Shylock 
leaves the court a broken man, we know it is needful that this should 
be so. 

\^From Hudson's School Edition, 1879.] 

The Merchant of Venice is justly distinguished among Shakespeare's 
dramas, not only for the general felicity of the language, but also for 
the beauty of j^articular scenes and passages. For descriijtive power, 
the opening scene of Antonio and his friend is not easily rivalled, and 
can hardly fail to live in the memory of any one having an eye for 
such things. Equally fine in its way is the scene of Tubal and 
Shylock, where the latter is torn with the struggle of conflicting pas- 
sions ; his heart now sinking with grief at the account of his fugitive 
daughter's expenses, now leaping with malignant joy at the report of 
Antonio's losses. The trial-scene, with its tugging vicissitudes of pas- 
sion, and its hush of terrible expectation, — now ringing with the Jew's 
sharp, spiteful snaps of malice, now made musical with Portia's strains 
of eloquence, now holy with Antonio's tender breathings of friendship, 
and dashed, from time to time, with Gratiano's fierce jets of wrath, 
and fiercer jets of mirth, — ^is hardly surpassed in tragic power any- 
where ; and as it forms the catastrophe proper, so it concentrates the in- 
terest of the whole play. Scarcely inferior in its kind is the night-scene 
of Lorenzo and Jessica, bathed as it is in love, moonlight, "touches of 
sweet harmony," and soul-lifting discourse, followed by the grave moral 
reflections of Portia, as she approaches her home, and sees its lights, and 
hears its music. The bringing in of this passage of ravishing lyrical 
sweetness, so rejjlete with tlie most soothing and tranquillizing effect, 
close upon the intense dramatic excitement of the trial-scene, is such a 
transition as we shall hardly meet with but in Shakespeare, and aptly 
shows his unequalled mastery of the mind's capacities of delight. 
The affair of the rings, with the harmless perplexities growing out 
of it, is a well-managed device for letting the mind down from the 
tragic height whereon it lately stood, to the merry conclusion which 
the play requires. Critics, indeed, may easily quarrel with this sportive 
after-piece ; but it stands approved by the tribunal to which Criticism 
itself must bow, — the spontaneous feelings of such as are willing to 
be made cheerful and healthy, without beating their brains about the 
how and wherefore. It is in vain that critics tell us we ought to " laugh 
by precept only, and shed tears by rule." 

I ought not to close without remarking what a wide diversity of 
materials this play reconciles and combines. One can hardly realize 
how many things are here brought together, they are ordered in such 
perfect concert and harmony. The greatness of the work is thus 
hidden in its fine proportions. In many of the poet's dramas we are 
surprised at the great variety of character : here, besides this, we have 
a remarkable variety of plot. And, admirable as may be the skill 
displayed in the characters individually considered, the interweaving 



3 6 INTROD UCTION. 

of so many several plots, without the least confusion or embarrassment, 
evinces a still higher mastership. For, many and various as are the 
forms and aspects of life here shown, they all emphatically live to- 
gether, as if they all had hut one vital circulation. 

[^Fi'om the " Introduction " to Morlei/'s Edition, 1886.] 

When he had done his 'prentice work, and become master of his 
craft, every play of Shakespeare's became a true poem, and had the 
spiritual unity that is in every great work of art. Each play had its 
own theme in some essential truth of life, which is its soul expressed 
in action, and with which every detail is in exquisite accord. 

In The Merchant of Venice, Shakespeare dealt in his own way with 
the problem of life. It opens with a vague foreshadowing of evil in a 
merchant with his Avealth upon the waves. There is rapid advance of 
the story, the very first lines pointing towards the event on which the 
action of the play depends ; but the narrative all sj)rings up naturally 
in a dialogue that represents the cheerful intercourse of life. This 
genial air is, as it Avere, the atmosj)here of the whole play, softens all 
its didactic outlines, and pervades especially its opening and close. 
. . . The social geniality deepens at the end of tlie first scene into the 
close intercourse of friendship between Antonio and Bassanio. There 
is here a double purpose answered. It pertains to the essence of the 
play that a firm friendship between man and man should be at tlie root 
of it: but this friendship unites also the two men Avho serve as centres 
to the two parts of the story, the old story of the caskets, used by 
Shakespeare for a solving of life's problem from its human side ; and 
the old story of the pound of flesh through Avliich he added the diviner 
sense of duty. ... 

In developing his plot Shakespeare produces a fine climax by so 
interweaving its two threads that the one which leads to the human 
lesson of the way to the true life comes to its end in the Third Act ; 
the other is ready to add, in the Fourth Act, its diviner lesson ; and the 
Fifth Act then rises to the height of heaven itself in exiDressing the 
full thought of the whole play. 



EXPLANATIONS. 

Abbott = the Shakespearian Grammar of Dr. E. A. Abbott, third edi- 
tion, 1873. 

A. S. = Anglo-Saxon; Dan. = Danish ; Fr. = French ; Gael. = Gaelic ; 
Ger. = German; Gr.= Greek; Icel. = Icelandic ; O. E. = 01d English; 
Sans. = Sanskrit, etc. 

Brachet— Etymological French Dictionary, by A. Brachet, translation, 
1873. 

Class. Dict.^Classiccd Dictionary. 

Falloivs— Supplemental Dictionary of the English Lamjuage, by Rt. Rev. 
Samuel Fallows, 1886. 

Fnrness = i\\e Variorum edition of Hamlet, Romeo and Juliet, etc., by 
Dr. Horace Howard Furness, 1877, 1883, etc. 



INTRODUCTION. 37 

Masterpieces. Sprague's Masterpieces in English Literature, 1874. 
Maetzner = Engliselie Grammatik, von E. Maetzner, 1860-65. 
g.v. = which see. 

Skeat — Etymological Dictionary of the English Language, by Walter W. 
Skeat, 1882. 

Webster ='^o&\\ Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1882. 

Wedgivood - Dictionary of English Etymology, by H. A. Wedgwood 
second edition, 1878. ' 

Worcester = New Etymological Dictionary (edition by Lippincott, 1888 
on tlie basis of Worcester's Unabridged Dictionary). ' ' 

-v/~root. 

S^^' As Rolfe's edition is in more general use than any orner, and 
seerns likely to continue the most popular, we follow his numbering of 
the lines in our references to other plays than The Merchant of Venice 



DRAMATIS PERSONS. 



The Duke of Venice. 

The Prince of Mokocco, j 

rri -D ^ A ^^ > suitors to Portiao 

The Prince of Arragon, J 

Antonio, the Merchant of Venice. 

Bassanio, his friend. 

Salanio, ^ 

Salarino, / friends to Antonio and Bassanio, 

Gratiano, ^ 

Lorenzo, in love with Jessica. 

Shylock, a Jew. 

Tub4i>, a Jew, his friend. 

Launcelot Gobbo, a clown. 

Old Gobbo, father to Launcelot. 

Sale RIO, a messenger. 

Leonardo, servant to Bassanio. 

Baltiiasar, 1 

Stephano, [servants to Portia. 

Portia, a rich heiress. 
Nerissa, her waiting-maid. 
Jessica, daughter to Shylock. 

Magnificoes of Venice, Officers of the Court of Justice, Gaoie*. 
Servants, and other Attendants. 

Scene : Partly at Venice, and partly at Belmont. 



THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 



ACT I. 

Scene I. Venice. A Street. 
Enter Antonio, Salarino, and Salanio. 

Antonio. In sooth, I know not why I am so sad : 
It wearies me ; you sa}^ it wearies you ; 
But how I caught it, found it, or came by it, 
What stuff 't is made of, whereof it is born, 
I am to learn ; 5 

And such a want-wit sadness makes of me 
That I have much ado to know myself. 

8ala7'ino. Your mind is tossing on the ocean; 
There, where your argosies with portly sail. 
Like signiors and rich burghers on the Hood, 10 

Act I. Scene I. Is the key-note struck in the first few lines, as in the 
first scene in Macbeth? — 1. sootli, reality, truth. A. S. sodh, soth. "At 
first the present participle of Aryan as, to be," says Skeat. Hence applied 
to what really is. What compounds? — Effect of alliteration here? in 
line 6? 14? generally? — Explain Antonio's sadness. Is it liver trouble 
[Booth] ? Is he anxious about property ? Is it a foreboding of evil ? spleen ? 
expected loss of a companion? ill health? something else? — 2. wearies. 
The original sense of luear, A. S. iverian, to wear clothes, is to loear ovt or 
aroay. Synonyms? — 3. came by. So in I, ii, 8, — 4. stuff. Spoken 
disparagingly? 3Tacbet7i, V, iii, 44. — G. want- wit, dunce. Original 
meaning of vnt9 — 8. ocean, here trisyllable, illustrates, in the change to 
two syllables, an old tendency to shorten long words. Thus the Latin 
el-e-e-mos-y-na became alms ,* o-ce-a-nvs, o-r.e-an, o-cean. See note on line 
13^- — Abbott, 479. Antonio's heart is said to be where his treasures are, 
and to partake of the unrest of the seas! Skill in this? — 9. argosies, 
merchant (or sometimes war) vessels, then accounted large, but perhaps 
never over two hundred tons' burden. Read in a classical dictionary the 
story of Jason, who sailed In the fifty-oared ship Argo from Thessaly to 
Colchis in search of the golden fleece." Other allusions in this play to that 
story? — Some derive the word "argosy " from Ragusa, once an important 
sea-port on the Adriatic. See Fvj^npssl — 10. signiors, lords, men of rank 
and standing? Is mature age implied? Italian signior is from Latin 

39 



40 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [ACT I. 

Or, as it were, the pageants of the sea. 
Do overpeer the petty traffickers, 
That curts}' to them, do them reverence, 
As the}' fly b}' them with then- woven wings. 

Salanio. Believe me, sir, had I such venture forth, 15 

The better part of my affections would 
Be with my hopes abroad. I should be still 
Plucking the grass, to know where sits the wind. 
Peering in maps for ports, and piers, and roads ; 
And every object that might make me fear 20 

jMisfortune to my ventures, out of doubt, 
Would make me sad. 

Salarino. My wind, cooling my broth, 

Would blow me to an ague, when I thought 
What harm a w^ind too great might do at sea. 
I should not see the sandy hour-glass run, 25 

But I should think of shallows and of flats, 

fienior, elder; old Fr. senre, abbreviated to sire and sir. See note on II, v, 
37. — burghers, citizens, freemen of a burgh or borough, burgesses. A. S. 
burh or burg (whence hvrj/ in Rox-bury, Mill-bury, etc.), a fort or strong- 
hold. A. S. heorgan,to defend. — on the flood. Hudson, Dyce, and Steevens 
here change on to of. Judiciously? — The Venetians may well be said to live 
on the sea. Douce. — 11. pageants (Lat. comjiaginala, framed together ?) , 
huge movable scaffolds on which great structures in tlie shape of castles, 
dragons, giants, ships, etc., were exhibited in the old mystery plays ; hence 
magnificent shows. " The i^oets," says Addison, " contrived the following 
pageant: ... a floating mountain, split at the top in imitation of Parnas- 
sus." See Scott's Kenihvorth, xxx, xxxix, etc. See >'<l-eat. — 12. over- 
peer, look over? appear over? lord it over? or what? — Is the word in 
good use now ? — Is do now used as in this line ? allowable auxiliary when ? 
— 13. curtsy. Image felicitous? What was the old-fashioned " curtsy" 
or "courtesy" of our mothers? — 14. they. Who? — From the word- 
painting in this ocean view could a painter reproduce the scene? — 15. I. 
Emphatic here ? — venture. So in lines 21, 42. See line 143. — forth. See 
lines 143, 179 ; Act II, sc. v, lines 11, 36. What infer you as to its meaning? 
10. my. Emphatic ? — 17. still (A. S. stillan, to remain in a stall; 




show which wav th^ wind blows." — T took a feather, or a little, light grass, 
and. so well as I could, learned how the wind stood. Ascham's Toxophilus. 
— sits. Personification? Picture here? — 19. Peering. Is peer akin to 
pore? to pry? to pear in appear ? — piers. Paronomasia?— Lat. petra : 
Gr. TreVpa, pkra ; Fr. /^^Vrre, rock, stone. — roads, where they ride at an- 
chor, roadsteads. A. S. rirlan, to ride; rod, rode: rod, a riding. Shake- 
speare has the word in the three senses of a road or rraif : an anchnrar/e, 
where ships ride; and a forai/. Mto/. — So " Yarmouth Roads." — 21. 
out of dovibt modifies wliat?- 23. ague. Root ak; Lat. ac-iifa. sharp 
( fehris, fever), fever fit; Fr. aif/x : Old Fr. feminine a(/ve. — 25. hour- 
glass. In the olden time quite common in church on an iron stand near 



SCENE I.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 41 

And see, my wealthy Andrew docks in sand ! 

Vailing her high top lower than her ribs, 

To kiss her burial ! Should I go to church 

And see the holy edifice of stone, 30 

And not bethink me straight of dangerous rocks, 

Which, touching but my gentle vessel's side, 

Would scatter all her spices on the stream, 

Enrobe the roaring waters with my silks. 

And, in a word, but even now worth this, 35 

And now worth nothing? Shall I have the thought 

To think on this, and shall I lack the thought 

That such a thing bechanc'd would make me sad ? 

But tell not me : I know Antonio 

Is sad to think upon his merchandise. 40 

Antonio. Believe me, no : I thank my fortune for it. 
My ventures are not in one bottom trusted. 
Nor to one place ; nor is my whole estate 
Upon the fortune of this present year : 
Therefore my merchandise makes me not sad. 45 

Salarino. Why, then you are in love. 

Antonio. Fie fie ! 

Salarino. Not in love neither ? Then let us say you are sad, 

the pulpit. Why? — 27. Andrew. Knight suggests that this name was 
given to ships in compliment to Andrea Dorea, a Genoese admiral and 
statesman, who lived from 1468 to 15(;0.— docks = places itself as in a 
dock? The editors change dochs, the original reading, to "dock 'd," or 
"decks"; wisely? — The present editor gives his reasons for retaining 
docks" in Shakespcariana, March, 1884. — 28. Vailing, lowering. Said 
to be from ad vallem, toward the valley (Old Fr. aval, downward opposed 
to Old Fr. amont, upward; Lat. ad montem, toward the mountain) —See 
" vailed lids " in Hamlet, I, ii, 70. — 29. To kiss her burial. Position of 
the ship?— 31. straight. How does this come to mean immediately as 
It commonly does in Shakespeare ? — 32. gentle. Meaning? Often it 
means high-born, noble, of good gens or family. — 33. stream. Milton's 
" ocean-stream " ? So " gulf-stream " of the great current. — 34. Enrobe. 
Scott in Ivanhoe, x, says, "robed the seething billows in my choice silks." 
— 35. this. The meaning to be made clear by a large gesture ? — 38. be- 
chanc'd. See note on beshreiv, II, vi, 52. The prefix be- gives emphasis, 
as in bcdecJc; or denotes nearness, as beside; or makes intransitive verbs 
transitive, as befall; or spreads the meaning, as bedaub; or changes the 
direction, as behold; or loses its meaning. "Which here ?— 40. to think 
For this use of "to," see Abbott, 356.-42. bottom, a merchant vessel or 
transport ship. Like venture, the word is still used. A. S. botm ; Gr. 
7TvOtJ.riu, puthmen, depth. — 46. Fie, fie. Akin to Lat. 2'>hi(i, Ger. pfii), fie 
foh, " due to the sound of blowing away." Skeat. — This line lacks a foot. 
May a pause, or look, or gesture take the place of a part of a verse ? As in 
Tennyson's Dream of Fair Women, Cleopatra's eyes "filled with light the 
interval of sound ! ' ' Such breaks in lines are a frequent device of Shake- 



42 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act I. 

Because you are not merry : and 't were as easy 

For you to laugh and leap, and say you are merry, 

Because you are not sad. Now, by two-headed Janus ! 50 

Nature hath fram'd strange fellows in her time : 

Some that will evermore peep through their eyes 

And laugh, like parrots at a bagpiper; 

And other of sucli vinegar aspect 

That they '11 not show their teeth in way of smile, 55 

Though Nestor swear the jest be laughable. 

Enter Bassanio, Lorenzo, and Gratiano. 

Salanio. Here comes Bassanio, your most noble kinsman, 
Gratiano, and Lorenzo. Fare ye well ; 
We leave you now with better company. 

'Salarino. I would have stay'd till I had made you merry, 
If worthier friends had not prevented me. Gi 

Antonio. Your worth is very dear in my regard. 
I take it, your own business calls on 3^ou, 
And you embrace the occasion to depart. 

Salarino. Good morrow, my good lords. G5 

Bassanio. Good seniors both, when shall we laugh? say 
when ? 
You grow exceeding strange : must it be so ? 

Salarino. We '11 make our leisures to attend on j^ours. 

'[Exeunt Salarino and Salanio. 

speare's, making the pause more eloquent than any words? — 50. Janus, 
porter of heaven, represented as having two faces, a grave and a merry, 
looking in opposite directions. Why? See Class. Diet. — 52. peep. Laugh- 
ter partly closes the eyes. — 54. other = others, as often in writers of Shake- 
speare's time. Abbott, 12', Job, xxiv, 24. — 54. aspect. Always accented 
on second syllahle in Shakespeare. One of a multitude of words that illus- 
trate a marked tendency of the English accent to fall hack towards the 
initial syllable. Abbott, 400. — 55. way of smile. Is another way alluded 
to ? Because such are apt enough to show their teeth in anger [Warhur- 
ton] ? For the omitted " the," see Abbott, 89. — 5(j. Nestor. King of Pjdos^ 
one of the Greek heroes in tlie war against Troy ; very old, very grave, and 
very sweet-voiced ; the last man to swear a jest to he laughable unless it 
were very funny indeed ? — 57. kinsman. What relation ? — Fare. A, S. 
faran, to go. Life a pilf/nmaf/c. ? Compounds, welfare, thorovf/hfare, 
etc. — 61. prevented. (Lat. pre, before; venire, to come) = stopped? antici- 
pated? Often used by Shakespeare in its root sense, as it is in the Bible. 
"I prevented the dawn of the morning, and cried." Psalms, cxix, 147. — 
65. Note the shortness of the line. Reason for it ? See note on line 4G, ante. 
— 67. exceeding. Often used as adverb in Shakespeare, the Bible, and 
old writers. — strange, distant, like a stranger; opposite of familiar. Ex- 
ceeding straoge = quite a stranger, very mucli of a stranger. Gr. ck, ck, out: 
Lat. ex, out of; e.c^era, outside; ext ran ens, foreign; Old Fr. estrange; Fr. 



SCENE I.] Tim MERCHANT OF VEmCE. 4o 

Lorenzo. My Lord Bassaiiio, since you 've found Antonio, 
We two will leave you ; but at dinner-time, 70 

I pray you, have in mind where we must meet. 

Bassanio. I will not fail you. 

Gratiano. You look not well, Signior Antonio ; 
You have too much respect upon the world : 
They lose it that do buy it with much care. 75 

Believe me, you are marvellously chang'd. 

Antonio. I hold the worlcl but as the world, Gratiano ; 
A stage, where ever}^ man must play a part. 
And mine a sad one. 

Oratiano. Let me play the fool ; 

With mirth and laughter let old wrinkles come, 80 

And let ni}^ liver rather heat with wine 
Than my heart cool with mortifying groans. 
Why should a man whose blood is warm within 
Sit like his grandsire cut in alablaster 

Sleep when he wakes, and creep into the jaundice 85 

By being peevish ? I tell thee what, Antonio, — 
I love thee, and it is my love that speaks, — 
There are a sort of men whose visages 



etrange. " Shakespeare uses exceedingly only five times, in four of which 
it modifies the adverh ^oe//." Rolfe. — 72. Another short line. Indicative 
of a respectful pause? or of what? — 74. respect upon, regard for, con- 
sideration or concern for, carefulness about ? Shakesj^eare is fond of using 
words in their root sense ? Lat. respectus, a looking at (re, hack ; specere, 
to see, look). Abbott's Shakesp. Grammar, sect. 191, notes that here is 
" an allusion to the literal meaning of respect.^' — 75. lose, etc. Like "He 
that findeth his life shall lose it " ? Mattheio, x, 39 ; xvi, 25. — " It " refers 
to the oj)inion of the world [Furness] ? to worldly weal [Smith] ? — 78. 
stage. Shakespeare is fond of expressing the idea that "All the world's 
a stage." As You Like It, II, vii, 139, etc. — " She found the world but a 
wearisome stage to her, where she played a part against her will." Sidney's 
Arcadia (1595). — 79. fool, the jester, buffoon, funny fellow, clown, or fool, 
in all the old comedies. Often he was anything but foolish. Whipple says 
that the fool in Lear " has wisdom enough to set up a college of philoso- 
phers"! 81. liver, etc. So in Antony and Cleopatra, I, ii, 23, "heat my 
liver with drinking." — 82. cool, etc. Allusion to the old notion that every 
sigh or groan takes a drop of blood from the heart? So in Midsummer 
Wight's Dream, III, ii, 97; Henry VI, III, ii, 60-63. — 84, grandsire. Sire 
and sir, derived from Lat. senior? — 84. alablaster. So spelled usually in 
Shakespeare, Spenser, and Milton. Is it right to substitute a word that 
has a -different sound? Use of alabaster in or on tombs in Shakespeare's 
time? — 85. jaundice. Meaning? The " yellows "? the " blues " ? Caused 
by grief ? Trail, and Cress., I, lii, 2 ; Twelfth N., II, iv, 113. Physiological 
truth here ? Fr. jaune, from Lat. galhinns, greenish yellow ; galbns, yel- 
low. Lat. galhinns became gcdh'nus, galnvs, jalne, jaune. With suffix 
■^isse (Lat. -itia, denoting quality) , jaunisse, jaundice. The d is excrescent. 



44 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act I. 

Do cream and mantle, like a standing pond, 

And do a wilful stillness entertain, 90 

With purpose to be dress'd in an opinion 

Of wisdom, gravity, profound conceit ; 

As who should say, " I am, sir, an oracle, 

And when I ope my lips let no dog bark ! " 

my Antonio, I do know of these 95 
That therefore only are reputed wise, 

For saying nothing ; when, 1 am very sure. 

If they should speak, would almost damn those ears 

Which, hearing them, would call their brothers fools. 

1 '11 tell thee more of this another time : 100 
But fish not, with this melancholy-bait. 

For this fool-gudgeon, this opinion. — 
Come, good Lorenzo. — Fare ye well a while ; 
I '11 end my exhortation after dinner. 

Bracket and Skeat. — 89. cream and mantle. Note how Shakespeare 
turns nouns into verbs. Mantle he makes both transitive and intransitive : 
to cover with a mantle, to wear a mantle. Which here ? — 90, do. Can 
"visa2;es'' he the siibject of "do''? The pronoun is often omitted when 
it can^be easily supplied. Abbott, 244. — entertain, maintain? — 91. 92. 
opinion of, reputation for. Latin sense of opinio, frequent in old writers ? 
— "He . . . was clad with zeal as a cloak." Isaiah, lix, 17; Macbeth, I, 
vii, 33, 36. — conceit in Shakespeare is said to mean (1) a conception or 
idea, (2) intellect or mental power, (3) fanciful thought; never, as we now 
use it, over-estimation of one's self. Meiklcjohn. — Which sense suits best 
}jepe? — 93, As wlio should say, like one who should say. This is good 
old English, but possibly originated in the French comme qni dirait. I. ii, 
39. Did vShakespeare understand French? — oracle. What? The folios 
all have "an" before "Oracle," and do not use the capital ,S' in "Sir." 
Should the old reading stand ? — 94. ope. A. S. v}). To " do up (Old Eng. 
chq)) a door" is to Uft the latch and open the door? — 90. therefore = 
on this account. —97. "For saying, because they say? — when. Hudson 
follows Rowe in changing "when" to "who." Wisely? — 98. Avonld. 
May we mentally supply "they " before " would " ? Abbott (399) remarks, 
"When there can be no doubt what is the nominative, it is sometimes 
omitted." Hamlet, III, i, 8. — Collier's copy of the folio of 1632 has 't icould 
for ivovld.— damn, etc. = condemn to perdition those ears (Z.^,, hearers) 
who would (be provoked so as to) cair their brothers (the speakers) fools. 
Allusion to Mattheir,Y, 22, "Whosoever shall say (to his brother), 'thou 
fool,' shall be in danger of hell-fire " ? Shakespeare is so familiar with the 
Bible, that we, who "know less of the sacred book, are sometimes slow to 
catch his allusions to it, — " A thing is often said to do that which it in any 
way causes to be done.'" Hudson. — 102. gudgeon. Gr. ^toiSids, kobios ; Lat. 
f/obio; Fr. qovjon; Mid. Eng. gojone; a small fresh-water fish of the carp 
kind, described by Izaak Waltoii as " easy to be taken." Swift uses the word 
to denote a person easily cheated. Is fool-cnidgeon a fool fisli? or such as 
any fool could catch ? or, such as none but a fool would try to catch ? ' ' The 
whole sentence is, ' Fish not with this melancholy as a bait for this gudgeon 
of the fool.'" Funiess. Abbott, 22, ^oO. Your preference? — opinion. 
Line 91.-104, after dinner. Allusion to the Puritan preachers, who, 



SCENE I.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 45 

Lorenzo. Well, we will leave yon, then, till dinner-time. 105 
I must be one of these same dumb wise men, 
For Gratiano never lets me speak. 

Gratiano. Well, keep me company but two years moe. 
Thou shalt not know the sound of thine own tongue. 

Antonio. Farewell : I '11 grow a talker for this gear. no 

Gratiano. Thanks, i' faith ; for silence is only commendable 
In a neat's tongue dried, and a maid not vendible. 

\_Exeunt Gratiano and Lorenzo. 

Antonio. Is that any thing now ? 113 

Bassanio. Gratiano speaks an infinite deal of nothing, 
more than any man in all Venice. His reasons are as two 
grains of wheat hid in two bushels of chaff : 3'ou shall seek 
all day ere you find them ; and when you have them, they 
are not worth the searcli. 

Antonio. Well, tell me now, what lady is the same 
To whom you swore a secret pilgrimage, 120 

That you to-day promis'd to tell me of? 

Bassayiio. 'T is not unknown to you, Antonio, 
How much I have disabled mine estate. 
By something showing a more swelling port 
Than my faint means would grant continuance : 125 



being generally very long and tedious, were often forced to put off that 
part of their sermon called the exhortation till after dinner [Warburton] ? 
— 108. nioe. Shakespeare uses interchangeably j)io, moe, and more. Here 
three folios have mo. — 110. gear. A. S. gearwe, preparation, dress, orna- 
ment; f/earu, ready; Mid. Eng. gere, preparation; whence garb, dress. 
The word is vaguely equivalent to "matter," "business," "subject." 
Comus, 167. — 112. neat's. A. S. neat, an animal of the bovine kind ; the 
plural same as the singular; cattle, oxen; so named from their usefulness 
and employment ; A. S!l nedtan, to use, employ. — not vendible = not good 
for the matrimonial market [Hudson]? Lat. venum, sale; dare, to give; 
French vendre, to sell. —113. Is tliat anything now? The old editions 
read. It is that anything noio. Johnson proposed to read. Is that anything 
new ? Rowe proposed the present reading. Test the old and Johnson's.— 
" Bassanio answers that Gratiano speaks an infinite deal of nothing, — the 
greatest part of his discourse is not anything." Tyriohitt. — 116. shall 
seek. Shall and ivill were imperfectly differentiated in Shakespeare's 
time. P.saZms, xxiii, 6. Abbott, 315. — 123. disabled. H, vii, 30. — 124. 
something = somewhat ? in some degree ? Not unf requently so in Shake- 
speare. Hamlet, III, i, 173; Abbott, 68. — swelling port = ostentatious 
bearing [Clark and Wright] ? imposing api:)earance, deportment, or outfit 
[Hudson] ? external pomp of appearance, state [Stevens] ? Lat. portare ; 
Fr. 250?'^er, to carry. See "portly sail," line 9; "greatest port," III, ii, 276, — 
" My port and pomp did well become a king of Argos's daughter." Sidney's 
Arcadia. — 125. Supply the ellipsis. — of [Clark and Wright, Rolf e, etc.] ? 
to [Hudson] ? Such omissions are common in Shakespeare. II, vi, 9; IV, 



46 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act l. 

Nor do I now make moan to be abridg'd 

From such a noble rate ; but my chief care 

Is to come fairl}' off from the great debts 

Wherein my time, something too prodigal, 

Hath left me gag'd. To you, Antonio, 130 

I owe the most, in monej', and in love ; 

And from your love I have a warranty 

To unburthen all my plots and purposes, 

How to get clear of all the debts I owe. 

Antonio. I pray 3'ou, good Bassanio, let me know it ; 135 
And if it stand, as you yourself still do, 
Within the eye of honor, be assur'd, 
My purse, my person, my extremest means, 
Lie all unlock'd to your occasions. 

Bassanio. In m}' school-days, when I had lost one shaft, 140 
I shot his fellow of the self-same flio;ht 



i, 380 ; Abbott, 292, 394. — 126. make moan = complain ? Ill, iii, 23. A. S. 
mfenan, to moan; fr. man, wickedness; Icel. mein, hurt, harm, sore, 
whence there is but a step to moan as an expression of pain. Hkeat. to 
be = at being? of being? about being? The A. S. infinitive ended in -an, 
which afterwards became -en. To was not used with it at first, but with 
the gerund, like Latin ad. " The indefinite use of the infinitive in a gerun- 
dive sense seems to be a continuation of the old idiom which combined to 
with the gerund." Abbott, ?>hl. — 127. rate. Lat. reor, I think; ration, 
determined, settled, fixed ; Old Fr. rate, price, value. V ra, to fix, iden- 
tical with v/ AR, to fit, as in art. SJceat. — 12S. prodigal. Is time here 
personified? "It is equivalent to oipa, hora, when wpa means the spring- 
time of life, youth, manhood." Allen, quoted by Furness. — 130. gag'd"? 
White prints f/aged, remarking that gag'd would put a gag in Bassanio's 
mouth too soon! — Lat. vas, vadis, vadium ; A. S. ived, a pledge ; Low Lat. 
ivadiare, to pledge, became vadjare, Eng. loage, Fr. gager, to gage or 
pledge; Fr. gage, a gage, pawn, or pledge; whence mort-(/cff/e. "The 
Norman French, unable to iDrononnce the 10, employed a gu ; and the Eng- 
lish sometimes substituted a to for a g or gii. Compare roar, gnerre; loile, 
guile; ivise, guise ; warden, guardian ; William, GuilUmme, etc." Meikle- 
john. — 132. warranty = voucher, guarantee, assurance? See note on 
"line 130. — 136. still = as yet ? always ? See line 17. — 137. eye of honour 
= within the range of what can be viewed as honorable [Rolfe] ? within the 
scope of honor's vision [Clark and Wright] ? " If it be such as needs not 
at any time shrink from the view of honor." Eecles. In Winter's Tale, 
III, ii, 49, 50, we read "one jot beyond the bound of honor." — 139. occa- 
sions. Meaning ? — Final -ion is commonly a dissyllable in Shakespeare. 
See note on ocean, line 8. — 141. Ms. In Shakespeare it, as possessive, 
occurs fourteen times; it's, nine times; its, once. Rolfe. — Milton uses its 
three times. Its is not found in King James's version of the Bible; but 
modern editions have substituted its for it in Leviticus, xxv, 5, See our note 
on Hamlet, I, ii, 216. — This mode of finding lost arrows is mentioned in 
several of the old writers, particularly in a passage in Qvips npon Qnci*^ 
tions (1600), published in Transactions of tlie New Shakespeare Society, 
1877-79. — 141. flight = range, a technical term in archery. ^^ K flight shot 



SCENE I.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 47 

The self -same way, with more advised watch, 

To find the other forth ; and by adventuring both, 

I oft found both. I urge this childhood proof, 

Because what follows is pure innocence. 145 

I owe you much, and, like a wilful youth, 

That which I owe is lost ; but if you please 

To shoot another arrow that self way 

Which you did shoot the first, I do not doubt, 

As I will watch the aim, or to find both, 190 

Or bring your latter hazard back again. 

And thankfully rest debtor for the first. 

Antonio. You know me well, and herein spend but time 
To wind about my love with circumstance ; 
And, out of doubt, you do me now more wrong, 155 

In making question of my uttermost, 
Than if you had made waste of all I have : 
Then do but say to me what I should do. 
That in your knowledge may by me be done, 
And I am prest unto it : therefore speak. 160 

Bassanio. In Belmont is a lady richly left ; 

was about, equal to the width of the Thames above London Bridge." 
Leland. — M'uch Ado, I, i, 35. — A. S. fleogan, to fly. The suffix th or t 
primarily denotes the action of the verb taken abstractly. Gibbs. — See 
troth, I, ii, 1. — 142. advised, deliberate, careful. "Judges ought to be 
more learned than witty, more reverend than plausible, and more advised 
than confident." Bacon, Essay, Ivi. — v/wm, to know; videre, to see; 
visum, seen to be best; ad, according to; Fr. avis, opinion, way of seeing a 
thing; aviser, to consider; s'aviser, to bethink one's self. Skeat, Bracket. 
— U3. forth = out? See "feasting forth," II, v, 36. This lino has how 
many feet? Is it our business to shorten it? — 144. childhood proof 
= childish experiment? — See "snail-slow," II, v, 46. — In Midsummer 
Night's Bream., Ill, ii, 202, we have " childhood innocence." See note on 
102; Abbott, 22, 430. — 146. wilful = obstinate, in extravagance [Clark and 
Wright] ? wilful in his prodigality [Rolfe] ? regardless, reckless, saucy 
[Schmidt]? "Witless" and "\vasteful" in place of "wilful" have been 
suggested. Any need of change ? Supply the ellipsis. — 148. self = same ? 
So in Twelfth Niqht, I, i, 39; Richard II, \, ii, 23. — "At that self moment." 
Bryden. — im, 151. or . . . or. Neatly, like Lat. aiit . . . cmt, for either 
. . . or. — 154. circumstance = circumlocution ? irrelevant matters ? 
ceremony? elaborate detail? — Lat. circum, around; stare, to stand. — 
Hamlet, I, v, 127; Othello, III, iii, 354. — 156. making question of = 
raising doubts as to my readiness to do ? doubting my readiness to do ? — 
uttermost. Adjective for noun? So "mv name be yok'd with his that 
did betray the Best." Winter's Tale, I, ii, 406, 407. — 160. prest (Lat. prae, 
in front; stare, to stand; late Lat. praesfrts, ready; Ital. and Span, presto ; 
Old Fr. prest; Fr. pret), ready [Stevens, Furness, etc.]?— "Still, Antonio 
might well say that he was pressed by his affection to do anything in his 
power to serve Bassanio." White. — 161. Belmont. Where is this BeL 
pipnt ? Many places in Italy and some in France are called Belmonte. — 



48 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [aCT I. 

And she is fair and, fairer than that word, 

Of wondrous virtues : sometimes from her eyes 

I did receive fair speechless messages. 

Her name is Portia ; nothing undervalued 165 

To Cato's daughter, Brutus' Portia : 

Nor is the wide world ignorant of her worth ; 

For the four winds blow in from every coast 

Renowned suitors ; and her sunny locks 

Hang on her temples like a golden fleece ; 170 

Which makes her seat of Belmont Colchos' strand. 

And mau}' Jasons come in quest of her. 

my Antonio, had I but the means 
To hold a rival place with one of them, 

1 have a mind presages me such thrift, 175 
That I should questionless be fortunate. 

Antonio. Thou know'st that all my fortunes are at sea ; 
Neither have I money nor commodity 
To raise a present sum : therefore go forth ; 
Tr3^ what my credit can in Venice do : 180 

That shall be rack'd, even to the uttermost, 
To furnish thee to Belmont, to fail' Portia. 

richly left. Rich-left heirs. Cymb., IV, ii, 227. See note on " ceremo- 
niously," V, i, 37; also V, i, 257. — 163. sometimes = in times past? for- 
merly? once ? Sometime is similarly used. See Ephesians, ii, 13. — Sometimes 
is genitive? See I, ii, 115. — Lat. ohm. — 165. uudervalued = inferior in 
value? II, vii, 53. — 166. to = in comparison with ? — Cato's. This Cato 
was Marcus Cato Uticensis, whose daughter Portia (or Porcia) became the 
second wife of her cousin Brutus. In North's translation of Plutarch, used 
by Shakespeare, she is praised for chastity, greatness of mind, and knowl- 
edge of philosophy. See Julius Gsesar, and Addison's Cato. — 168. four 
winds. Ezekiel, xxxvii, 9; Revelations, vii, 1. — 170. golden fleece. 
Golden hair adorns most of the famous beauties in the poets? — See note 
on line 9 ; also Class. Dictionary, article on Jason. See note on III, ii, 236, 
— 171. Colclios, a country on the eastern coast of the Black Sea. Spelled 
more correctly Colchis. It has mines of gold and silver, and thither went 
the Argonauts in search of the golden fleece. — 172. Jason's. Jason was 
the celebrated leader of the Argonauts. See Class. Diet. — 171. rival. 
Lat. rivus, a brook; rivalis, one who uses the same brook. The brook 
separating the land of one owner from that of another, or giving rise to 
quarrels between riparian proprietors, the word rivalis came to mean a 
.competitor. ^%q, Trench on the Study of Words. — 175. presages. Ellip- 
sis ? Such omissions are very common even now in conversation. Ahhot-t. 
214. — thrift. I, iii, 44, 80. Icel. f/ir(/if, thrift ; f/in/, i^rosperity ; thr if ask- 
to thrive. Skeat. So drift from drive, shaft from shave, draught or draft 
from drag, flight from fly, etc. — 177. all my fortunes, etc. Does this 
accord with the statement in lines 42, 43, 44 ? — 178. commodity = mer- 
chandise [Clark and Wright, Hudson, etc.] ? property [Rolfe] ? conven- 
ience? profit? Lat. C0771, with ; ^nocZ^/s, measure ; commddus, convenient; 
Low Lat. commodiosus, useful. — In HI, iii, 27, it is said to mean gain 0? 



SCENE II.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 49 

Go, presently iuquire, and so will I, 

Where money is, and I no question make 

To bave it of my trust, or for my sake. '[Exeunt. 185 

Scene II. Belmont. A room in Portia's house. 
Enter Portia and Neuissa. 

Portia. By my troth, Nerissa, my little bod}' is aweary of 
this great world. 

Nerissa. You would be, sweet madam, if your miseries 
were in the same abundance as your good fortunes are : and 
yet, for aught I see, they are as sick that surfeit with too 
much as they that starve with nothing. It is no mean happi- 
ness, therefore, to be seated in the mean : superfluity comes 
sooner by white hairs, but competency lives longer. s 

Portia. Good sentences, and well pronounced. 

Nerissa. They would be better, if well followed. 

Portia. If to do were as easy as to know what were good 
to do, chapels had been churches, and poor men's cottages 
princes' palaces. It is a good divine that follows his own 
instructions : I can easier teach twenty what were good to be 
done, than be one of the twenty to follow mine own teaching. 
The brain may devise laws for the blood ; but a hot temper 
leaps o'er a cold decree : such a hare is madness, the youth, 
to skip o'er the meshes of good counsel, the cripple. But 

advantage. In Winter's Tale, III, ii, 92, Hermione says, "To me can life 
be no commodity." — 183. presently = immediately ? Usually so in Shake- 
speare and the Bible. Hamlet, II, ii, 57 S; Macbeth, lY, Hi, I'iS; 1 Samuel, 
ii, K!; Mattheio, xxvi, 53. — 185. of my trust = on (or as a consequence of) 
my credit as a merchant? Abbott, 168. — What tliink you of the reason 
assigned by Bassanio for wishing to go to Belmont? Did Shakespeare 
believe in forebodings ? — Antonio's sadness? Does he correctly describe 
himself as a "want-wit " ? Value of this scene ? 

Scene II. 1. troth is merely a variant of truth. From \/trau, to 
believe ; A. S. tremo, trffic, truth. Skeat. — ^The th or t, joined to the roots 
of verbs, denotes the action of the verb taken abstractly; with adjectives 
it denotes the quality. See flight, I, i, 141; thrift, I, i, 175. — aweary. 
The a is here from the A. S. a or r/e (Gothic ga ; Old Sax. gi ; Fries, ie ; 
Old Ger. Jca, ki ; Ger. ge), originally = Lat. co or con meaning ivith. Gibbs ; 
Abbott, 24. See our Masterpieces in English Literature, p. 316. — 5. svirfeit 
= get cloyed? See III, ii, 114. — 6. mean. So the quartos (1600). The 
folios, printed after Shakespeare's death, have small. The repetition of 
"mean" is not unlike other repetitions in Shakespeare; as in Macbeth, V, 
iii, 44, "Cleanse the stuffed bosom of that perilous stuff." — 8. comes . . . 
by. I, i, 3. Is it so ? — 9. sentences = maxims [Clark and Wright, Hud- 
son] ? Lat. sententisB; Gr. yvSifiai, gyiomai. — 16. hare, etc. Allusion? — 



50 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act I. 

this reason is Dot in fashion to choose me a husband. — O 
me, the word choose ! I may neither choose whom I would, 
nor refuse whom I dislike : so is the will of a living daughter 
curbed by the will of a dead father. Is it not hard, Nerissa, 
that I cannot choose one, nor refuse none? 23 

Nerissa. Your father was ever virtuous, and holy men at 
their death have good inspirations ; therefore the lottery that 
he hath devised in these three chests of gold, silver, and lead 
(whereof who chooses his meaning chooses you) will, no doubt, 
never be chosen by any rightly but one who you shall rightly 
love. But what warmth is there in your affection towards 
any of these princely suitors that are already come ? 30 

Portia. I pray thee, over-name them, and as thou namest 
them, I will describe them; and, according to my descrip- 
tion, level at my affection. 

Nerissa. First, there is the Neapolitan prince. 

Portia. A}^, that's a colt indeed, for he doth nothing but 

18. reason = speech, discourse, talk [Fnrness] ? ratiocination? arguing? 
II, viii, 27. — The quartos, followed by all the recent editors except Fnrness, 
have " reasoning " and the before " fashion." We prefer the folio word in 
the sense of " talk." Better? For the omission of the article i^QQ Ahhott, 
82, 90. — 21, 22. will . . . will. Paranomasia ? — 23. nor refuse none. 
Like the frequent double negative, strengthening the negation, in Greek; 
as, ovfie evravQa rjKova-ev ovSels (Xeuopliou's Anabctsi's, I, iii, 21), Dot eveu in 
this place did no one (i.e., any one) hear. — See III, iv, 11; IV, i, 54; King 
John, V, vii, 112; Macbeth, II, iii, 44, 45 ; Abbott, 406. —24, 25. See liichard 

II, II, i, 4, 5, as to the ' ' tongues of dying men." — 27. chooses his mean- 
ing. Note the great significance of the word meaning ! The father's 
meaning ! — 28. who you. Who may be the subject, and you the object 
of "shall love." But most editors make loho the object, the inflection of 
ivho being often neglected in Shakespeare. So Rolfe, who thinks that the 
already in the next sentence should weigh strongly. II, vi, 30; Macbeth, 

III, i, 122; Abbott, 274. — 30. are already come. "With a few intransi- 
tive verbs, mostly of motion, both be and have are still used." Abbott, 295. 

— 33. level at = guess at [Hudson] ? aim at? — Lat. libra, balance ; libella, 
a little balance, a "level." See "as level as the cannon to his blank," 
Hamlet, IV, 1, 42; "level at the edge of a penknife," 2 Henry IV, III, ii, 
248, 249; " shot from the deadly level of a gun," Komeo and Jvliet, III, iii, 
103. — Origin of the meaning aim? — 2>^. colt. Malone says, "Though 
our author, when he composed this play, could not have read the following 
passage in Florio's translation of Montaigne's ^.ssr/2>.s (1603), he had per- 
haps met with the relation in some other book of that time : ' While I was 
a young lad (says old Montaigne, who died in 1592) I saw the prince of 
Sa'lmona at Naples manage a young, rough, and fierce horse, and show all 
manner of horsemanship.' " Not possible for Shakespeare to have read the 
original French of Montaigne ? — A. S. colt, a young ass, or young camel. 
v'ga, to produce. Allied to kin and child. Swedish kull, a brood, a hatch. 

— ''Colt is used for a witless, heady, gay youngster ; whence the phrase used 
of an old man too juvenile, that he still retains his colt's tooth " ! Johnson. 
^Does the word colt convey a lively image of the prince ? White, following 



SCENE II.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 51 

talk of his horse ; and he makes it a great appropriation to 
his own good parts, that he can shoe him himself. 

Nerissa. Then is there the Cownty Palatine. 38 

Portia. He doth nothing but frown, as who should say, 
' And you will not have me, choose.' He hears merry tales, 
and smiles not : I fear he will prove the weeping philosopher 
when he grows old, being so full of unmannerly sadness in 
his youth. I had rather to be married to a death's-head with 
a bone in his mouth than to either of these. God defend 
me from these two ! 45 

Nerissa. How say you by the French lord. Monsieur Le 
Bon? 

Portia. God made him, and therefore let him pass for a 
man. In truth, I know it is a sin to be a mocker : but, he ! 
wh}^, he hath a horse better than the Neapolitan's, a better 
bad liabit of frowning than the Count Palatine : he is every 



Steevens, says, "This term is applied to the prince in question on account 
of the high repute of Neapolitan horsemanship." — 36. appropriation 
= credit? addition [Singer, Hudson]? acquired excellence [Meiklejohn] ? 
Not elsewhere found in Shakespeare. — 37. parts = talents ? — 38. County 
= Count [Malone] ? Lat. com^ together; ire, to' go; comes, a companion. 
Old Fr. conte, or comte, a "corai)anion for a king," an earl. — Palatine. 
Lat. palatium, a palace; from Falatinus, a hill in Rome, the site of the 
original city. On this hill stood the palaces of Augustus, Tiberius, Nero, 
the houses of Cicero, Catiline, etc. A paladin or palatine {comes pah it 11) 
was properly a knight of a palace or royal household. The title dates from 
the time of the Merovingian kings of France, 448-752. Cotgrave says, 
" Compte palatin, a count palatine, is not the title of a particular ofitice, 
but an hereditary addition of dignity and honor, gotten by service done in 
a domestical charge." Johnson supposes that Shakespeare alludes to a 
Count Albertus a Laski, a Pole, who was received with honor by Queen 
Elizabeth in 1583. Likely ? Another county palatine married the daughter 
of James I. —40. And you will not, etc. So the folios. The second quarto 
has &; the first, (/",- most modern editions, an or an if. See H, ii, 51. 
— "What has froivning to do with an alternative choice? What is the 
threat that is here implied?" Fw'ness.—^l. weeping philosopher. 
Heraclitus of Ephesus (500-440 ?) was called the weeping, as Democritus was 
styled the laughing philosopher. See Class. Diet. — ^3. had rather to be. 
So the folios. The qu;y.-tos read had rather be. Abbott, 349. " Had is Old 
Eng. subjunctive, and corresponds to the German hdtte. Meiklejohn.— 
"Bring the I'athe (i.e., early) primrose," Milton; "the rather {i.e., later 
born) lambes," Spenser. Many grammarians object to the phrase had 
rather ; but the more learned are usually more tolerant. — PsaZms, Ixxxiv, 
10. — A. S. hrade, hrathe, quickly; hrath, hraed, hred, swift; Icel. hradr, 
fleet; Mid. High Ger. hrad, rad, quick ; Mid. Eng. rath, early, qnick; 7'athe, 
soon; comparative rather; old superl. rathest. — 'kQ. How say you by. 
By = with reference to, about, concerning. So in IT, ix, 25, and 1 Corinthians, 
iv, 4. Abbott, 145. — We say, "Do as you would be done &?/." — 49. Bon. 
The early editions have Bonne. Kightly changed? — 50, 5i. better bad 
^ worse [Halliwell] ? "Not 'better-bad,' i.e., worse; but 'better bad- 



52 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [aCT Io 

mail in no man ; if a throstle sing, lie falls straight a-caper- 
ing : he will fence with his own shadow. If I should marry 
him, I should marry twenty husbands. If he would despise 
me, I would forgive him ; for if he love me to madness, I 
should never requite him. 50 

Nerissa. What say you, then, to Falconbridge, the young 
baron of England. 

Portia. Yon know I say nothing to him, for he understands 
not me, nor I him : he hath neither Latin, French, nor Ital- 
ian, and yon will come into the court and swear that I have a 
poor pennyworth in the English. He is a proper man's pic- 
ture ; but, alas ! who can converse with a dumb show ? How 
oddly he is suited ! I think he bought his doublet in Italy, 
his round hose in France, his bonnet in Germany, and his 
behavior every where. 6G 

habit.'" Furness. — 52. throstle. Changed by Pope from ^?Y<.sseL A. S. 
throstle; Ger. drossel ; Lat. iurchts, tnrda, a thrush; Gr. aTpiiew, strizein, 
rpiCetv, to twitter. The original sense was probably "chirper" or "twit- 
terer.'' Allied to Lat. sfrix, a screech-owl; sturnus, a starling. — a-caper- 
iug. For the a- see Abbott, 24, and note on line 1 above. — Akin to Gr. 
K07rpo9, kapros, a boar? Directly from Ital. capriolare, to caper; capriolo, 
a kid; Lat. caper, a goat; Old Fr. capreoll ; Fr. se cahrer, to rear, prance. 
— Are Portia's characterizations to lie taken as Shakespeare's estimate of 
national peculiarities ? — 55. should never. So the folio reading, which 
Furness prefers with Rowe, Pope, and Hanmer. The other editors adopt 
the quarto word "shall." Choose!— 57. to Falconbridge. In what 
sense is to used here ? and in what sense two lines later ? — baron. Both 
bar and baron originally meant no more than " 7nan " or "husband." Old 
High Ger. 6a?', a man ; Low Lat. baro, a vassal, servant. V bhar, to carry; 
Gr.<j)epeLv, iJherein; Lat. /e?'re, to carry. The on is a mere suffix. Skeat. 
In England the baron is between a viscount and a baronet, being the lowest 
rank in the House of Lords. — 60. neither Latin. Is Shakespeare "hit- 
ting off " the ignorance of En'glish travellers ? "It would have been impos- 
sible for Shakespeare to hold up to ridicule this ignorance, had he himself 
come under the same condemnation." Proelss (1875), quoted approvingly 
by Furness. — 62. proper = handsome [Steevens, Staunton, etc.] ? Often so 
in Old English. Shakespeare uses properer and propcrcst. — Hebrcios, xi, 23 : 
"They saw he (Moses) was a proper child."— 63. picture. The unvary- 
ing expression of the reticent Englishman's face, " as idle as a painted ship 
upon a painted ocean "! — dumb show = pantomime. See a specimen in 
Hamlet, III, ii, 118, etc. — Furness thinks "proper" here means very, and 
that the mans picture of the folios and quartos should be printed man's- 
picture. Othello, I, iii, 69. — 64. suited. In Milton's 27 Penseroso, 122, we 
read "civil-suited Morn." — Lat. sequi, to follow; secta, a following, a 
train, a suite ; and in Low Lat. a suit of clothes! Skeat. — doublet. Lined 
so as to be of double thickness? — A close-fitting " roundabout " coat, with 
skirts reaching a little below the waist-band. — Fr. double, from Lat. duplus, 
twice-full; duo, two, -i^lus fov plenus, full. The -et is diminutive. — 65. 
round hose = trousers or breeches reaching down to the knee; not a 
covering for the feet. Icel. hosa, a kind of gaiter for the leg between knee 
and ankle. "Doublet and hose " in Shakespeare are " coat and breeches." 



SCENE II.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 53 

Ner. What think you of the Scottish lord, his neighbour? 

Portia. That he hath a neighborly charity in him; for he 
borrowed a box of the ear of the Englishman, and swore he 
would pay him again when he was able : I think the French- 
man became his surety and sealed under for another. 71 

Nerissa. How like you the young German, the Duke of 
Saxony's nephew? 

Portia. Very vilely in the morning, when he is sober, and 
most vilely in the afternoon, when he is drunk: when he is 
best, he is a little worse than a man ; and when he is worst, 
he is little better than a beast. An the worst fall that ever 
fell, I hope I shall make shift to go without him. 7^ 

Nerissa. If he should ofler to choose, and choose the right 
casket, you should refuse to perform your father's will, if 3'ou 
should refuse to accept him. 81 

Portia. Therefore, for fear of the worst, I pray thee, set a 
deep glass of Rhenish wine on the contrary casket ; for if the 
devil be within, and that temptation without, I know he will 
choose it. I will do any thing, Nerissa, ere I will be married 
to a sponge. 8G 

Nerissa. You need not fear, lady, the having any of these 
lords ; they have acquainted me with their determinations ; 
which is, indeed, to return to their home, and to trouble you 
with no more suit, unless you may be won by some other sort 



Macbeth, II, iii, 10 ; As You Like It, II, iv, 6; III, ii, 183. — bonnet = 
cap (as still used iu Scotland) or head-dress ? "The word originally sia:- 
nified some kind of stuff." Bracket. — 07. Scottish. The folio (of lG2;j) 
having heeu printed in the reign of James I reads " the other lord." " Not 
having the fear of gentle Jamie hefore our eyes, however, we prefer the 
word that Shakespeare wrote." White. — 71. sealed under = subscribed 
[Hudson] ? became surety for another cuff, to be administered in payment 
for one received of the Englishman? "Alluding," says Warburton, "to 
the constant promises of assistance that the French gave the Scotch in 
their quarrels with the English." — 74. vilely. Vildly or vildely in the 
old editions. — 75. drunk. Another hit at a national foible? But Eng- 
lishmen couild beat them all in drinking, according to lago, Othello, II, iji, 
00, 07, 08.— 77, An . . . f all = if . . . befall? — Icel. encla, if. See note 
on II, ii, 51. — 70. shift (A. S. sciftan, to divide, change), a temporary con- 
trivance, an expedient, a device? — 80. should refuse. For should and 
vionld, see Abbott, 322. — 83, Rhenish. — Color ? See III, i, 31. — contrary 
= wrong? So in Kine/ John, IV, ii, 198, the slippers are "thrust upon 
contra'ry feet." — 88. In this enumeration of Portia's suitors there may 
be some covert allusion to those of Queen Elizabeth [Johnson] ? — 90. sort 
= way, method, manner [Clark and Wright, Schmidt] ? lot [White] ? "Let 
blockish Ajax draw the sort to fight with Hector," Troil. and Cress., I, 
iii, 370. Lat. sors, lot; Fr. sort, lot; sorte, method. " Probably allied to 
severe, to connect, and to series, order." Skeat. See V, i, 132. — 91. 



54 THE MEBCHANT OF VENICE. [aCT I. 

than your father's imposition depending on the caskets. 91 

Portia. If I live to be as old as Sibylla, I will die as chaste 
as Diana, unless I be obtained by the manner of my father's 
will. I am glad this parcel of wooers are so reasonable, for 
there is not one among them but I dote on his very absence ; 
and I wish them a fair departure. 96 

Nerissa. Do you not remember, lady, in youi- father's time, 
a Venetian, a scholar and a soldier, that came hither in com- 
pany of the Marquis of Montferrat? 

Portia. Yes, yes, it was Bassanio ; as I think, so was ho 
called. 101 

Nerissa. True, madam : he, of all the men that ever my 
foolish eyes looked upon, was the best deserving a fair lady. 

Portia. I remember him well, and I remember him worth}^ 
of thy praise. 105 

Enter a Serving-man. 

Serving-7nan. The four strangers seek you, madam, to take 
their leave ; and there is a forerunner come from a fifth, the 
Prince of Morocco, who brings word the prince his master 
will be here to-night. 109 

Portia. If I could bid the fifth welcome with so good heart 
as I can bid the other four farewell, I should be glad of his 

imposition = imposed condition? Lat. in, upon; ponere, to pixt; 2^osUus, 
placed. — 92. Sibylla. Here a proper name, as in Bacon's Colors of Good 
and Evil, x, and his Advancement of Learning, ii, 23, 33. Apollo, en- 
amored of the Cunitean Sibyl, promised her as many years as there were 
grains of sand in her hand. She forgot to ask for perpetual youth. When 
Jineas came to Italy (about 1180 b.c?) she had lived some seven hundred 
years, and had six hundred more to wither in! Ovid, Metamorphoses, xv; 
Othello, III, iv, 69, 70; Taming of the Shre^v, I, ii, 68, 'as old as Sibyl.' ^ 
92. chaste. " An honorable matron is as chaste as a maid ; Diana was no 
chaster than Penelope, and Portia as chaste after she was Bassauio's wife 
as before." White. — 94. parcel = pack? company? So 'this youthful 
parcel of noble bachelors,' AlVs Well, II, iii, 51, 52. — Lat. pars, part; par- 
tirula; Fr. xiarrelle, little part.- — 9(5. I .wish. The quartos read I pray 
(rod grant, and some have thought the change was made in obedience to 
the statute, 3 James I, chai). 21, forbidding, under a penalty of ten pounds, 
the use of the sacred name on tlie stage. Is it used elsewhere in this play? 
reverently always? — 99. Montferrat. 'An old marquisate (i.e., mar- 
quis's dignity, lordship, or seigniory) of Northern Italy, now comprised in 
the provinces of Alessandria, Coni, Turin, No vara, and Genoa. Its capital 
wasCasale.' LippincotVs Gnzetieer. — 100. as I think, etc. Is she really 
in doubt ?— 105. thy praise. Tlie quartos ad<l here, "How now? what 
news?" Ought it to be inserted? Your reason? — 106. four. Should 
this be six ? Servant's blunder ? — seek you. So the folios. The quartos 
insert 'for.' Well? — 110. so good heart as. Is .so interchangeable with 
as, now? — The successive spellings from which as comes are: A. S. eal 



SCENE III.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 55 

approach : if he have the condition of a saint, and the com- 
plexion of a devil, I had rather he should shrive me than 
wive me. IM 

Come, Nerissa. — Sirrah, go before. 

Whiles we shut the gates upon one wooer, another knocks at 
the door. [^Exeunt. 115 

Scene III. Venice. A Public Place. 

Enter Bassanio and Shylock. 

Shylock. Three thousand ducats, — well. 
Bassanio. Ay, sir, for three months. 

Shylock. For three months, — well. [bound. 

Bassanio. For the which, as I told you, Antonio shall be 
Shylock. Antonio shall become bound, — well. 5 

Bassanio. May you stead me? Will you pleasure me? 
Shall I know your answer ? 

(all), sv)d (so) ; al swa; al so; alse ; als (= also) ; as. The A. S. eal sivd 
= both 'just so' and 'just as.' Skeat; Abbott, 275. — 112. condition = 
temper, disposition, qualities? Often so in Shakespeare. See best-con- 
ditioned, III, ii, 288; Othello, IV, i, 181. — complexion. Some Africans 
believe Satan to be white? — 111. shrive = absolve as a priest? receive 
confession? A.S. serif an, to impose a penance or compensation ; borrowed 
from Lat. scri^ere, to write ; whence Ger. sc/we«&en. — 115. Whiles. An 
adverbial use of the old genitive ; as, needs, of necessity ; times (in some- 
times = at one time) . This -times is also used a-s plural. Days is genitive 
in noio-a-days ; ships, in amidships ; sides, in besides ; so unaxoares ; eft- 
soons, etc. See sometimes, I, i, 163 ; needs, II, iv, 29. — " Whiles, ivhile, and 
lohilst are used indifferently by Shakespeare." Clark and Wright. Mattheio, 
V, 25 (King James's version) ; Abbott, 25, 137. — Progress made in the plot 
in this scene? What revelations of character? Worth of the scene? 
Is Portia heart-whole ? ' fancy free ' ? 

Scene III. 1. ducats. The ducat is said to have been named from 
the inscription upon it, " Sit tibi, Christe, datus, quem tu regis, iste duca- 
tiis." — 'Abbreviation of Ducatus Venetorum.' Hunter. — 'Literally a 
coin belonging to or coined by a duke.' Halliioell. — " Coryat, who visited 
Venice in 1608, tells us that the ducat was worth 4s. 8d." Clark and 
Wright. " The Venetian ducat, in or near the poet's time, is said to have 
been equivalent to nearly $1.53 of our money." Hudson. " Its value was 
about that of the American dollar." Rolfe. " Money was worth some six 
times as much then as it is now." Hudson. — well "has here something 
of an interrogative force" [Hudson] ? — 4. The which. An archaism. 
See Macbeth, III, i, 16; Genesis, i, 29; Abbott, 270. Shakespeare has the 
lohom in WiJitcr's Tale, IV, iv, 517. — Like the French lequel, though lequi 
is not used. — III, iv, 34; IV, i, 343.-6. may you stead. In the Prayer 
Book version of Psalms, cxxv, 1, may = can. Abbott, 307. From V mag, to 
have power. " Used here in the sense of ' Are you willing ' ? " Furness. 
■ — Can originally meant to knoi.o, and is from the same ultimate root as 
ken? Stead = Sissist. From n/ sta, to stand. — pleasure. Repeatedly 



56 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act I. 

Shylock. Three thousand ducats, for three months, and 
Antonio bound. 

Bassanio. Your answer to that. 10 

Shylock. Antonio is a good man. 

Bassanio. Have you heard any imputation to the contrary? 

Shylock. Ho, no, no, no, no : my meaning, in saying he is 
a good man, is to have you understand me that he is suffi- 
cient. Yet his means are in supposition : lie hath an argosy 
bound to Tripolis, another to the Indies; I understand, more- 
over, upon the Rialto, he hath a tliird at Mexico, a fourth for 
England, and other ventures he hath, squandered abroad. 
But ships are but boards, sailors but men ; there be land- 
rats and water-rats, water-thieves and land-thieves, — I mean 
pirates ; and then there is the pei-il of waters, winds, and 
rocks. The man is, notwithstanding, sufficient. Three thou- 
sand ducats, — I think I may take his bond. 23 

Bassanio. Be assured 3'ou ma}'. 

Shylock. I will be assured I may ; and that I may be as- 
sured, I will bethink me. May I speak with Antonio? 26 

Bassanio. If it please you to dine with us. 

thus used as a verb in Shakespeare. "Any noun or adjective could be 
converted into a verb by the Elizabethan authors." Abbott, 290. — 11. 
good man. In what sense? See Shylock's explanation. "We are 
accounted poor citizens, the patricians o'ood." Coriolanns, I, i, 10. — 13. 
Ho. So the first folio. — 15. supposition = doubt? belief, rather than 
knowledge ? unrealized, and therefore doubtful, form [Meiklejohn] ? — 
IG. Tripolis. Once an important commercial port of Syria, at the foot of 
a spur of the Lebanon range. — 17. Rialto. The Italian Isola di liialto = 
' island of the deep stream,' the name of the chief of the islands on which 
Venice is built. The Merchants' Exchange was " a most stately building," 
which, as well as the bridge to it, was also called the Rialto. Some having 
urged (as does also the Clarendon Press edition) that the words mean 
* island of the high bank,' Rolfe answers in The Literary World of March 
19, 1887: "The Italian rivo is from the Latin rivus, and means stream; 
the equivalent of ripa, l)ank, being the feminine riva. We may add that 
' island of the high bank ' would be a strange name for the Isola di Rialto, 
which is as flat as the other islands on which Venice is built." White, 
however, inclines to the opinion that the word here means the bridge, first 
l)uilt in 1591. — 18. squandered. 'A nasalized form of Lowland Scotch 
squatter, to splash water about, to scatter; ' lyroym. Eng. swatter ; Danish 
sqvatte, to splasli. The original sense was to splash water about somewhat 
noisily. The word is expressive of the noise. Skeat. As You Like It, II, 
vii, 57. — 19. be. Good Old English? See IV, i, 280.- A. S. bedn. Been 
or ben, afterwards be, as in King James's version of the Bible. — ' O, thex'e 
be players,' etc., Hamlet, III, ii, 2G; Abbott, 300. — In the folio loater theeves 
precedes land theeves. Chiasmus? — Most editors transpose the woi-ds. 
Rightly? 21. pirates. The old copies all have 'Pyrats,' and a pun is 
suspected! — 27. If it please you. This is the old form, the French .s'/Z 
voiis plait. The it was afterwards dropped, the you placed before please, 



SCENE III.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 57 

Shylock. Yes, to smell pork ; to eat of the habitation which 
your prophet, the Nazarite, conjured the devil into. I will 
buy with you, sell with you, talk with you, walk with you, and 
so following ; but I will not eat with you, drink with you, 
nor pray with you. — What news on the Rialto? — Who is 
he comes here? 33 

Enter Antonio. 

Bassanio. This is Signior Antonio. 

Shylock. [Aside. ^ How like a fawning publican he looks ! 
I hate him for he is a Christian, 
But more for that, in low simplicity. 
He lends out money gratis, and brings down 
The rate of usance here with us in Venice. 
If I can catch him once upon the hip, 40 



and then please came to be regarded as personal and passive, with you as 
subject. See on 'you were best,' II, viii, 33; V, i, 175. — In Shakespeare's 
time ' JSTazarite ' = iVa,'<;a?-e?ie. How is it now? — 29. conjured. Mat- 
theio, viii, 31, 32. — 31. following = forth. ISTot elsewhere so used in Shake- 
speare. —35. fawning publican 'seems to be an odd combination.' 
Clark and Wright. "A strange and either heedless or ignorant use of 
'publican.'" White. Shakespeare 'conceived of Shylock as an English 
innkeeper.' Allen. See Webster's Dictionary.— oi). for lie is = because 
he is [Clark and Wright] ? for being [Rolfe]? The difference between these 
two interpretations may be illustrated by the following from Measure for 
Measure, II, i, 27, 28: "You may not so extenuate his offence For I have 
had such faults ; " meaning "You may not so palliate or apologize for his 
offence on the ground that I too have committed similar offences." Abbott, 
151. — No pause between him and forP — 38. gratis. For Lat. riratiis = 
because of favor or kindness; hence gratuitously, without recompense? 
Ill, iii, 2; IV, i, 370.-39. usance. "It is almost incredible what gain 
the Venetians receive by the usury of the Jewes." Thomas's Histor)/ of 
Italy (1561). "They say that it is pity the devil should have God's part, 
v/hich is the tithe ; that the usurer is the greatest Sabbath-breaker, because 
his plough goeth every Sunday ; that the usurer is the drone that Virgil 
speaketh of , ' Ignavmn fncos pecus a iirvesepibus arrent' ['they keep the 
drones, a lazy brood, from the hives '] ; that the usurer breaketh the first 
law that was made for mankind after the fall, which was, 'In sudore mdtns 
tui comedes panem timm ' [' in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread '] , 
not In sudore vultus alieni [in the sweat of another's face] ; that usurers 
should have orange-tawny bonnets, because they do judaize; that it is 
against nature for money to beget money; and the like." Bacon's forty- 
first Essay.— m. upon the hip. An allusion to the angel's thus laying 
hold on Jacob, (re?iesits, xxxii, 24 [Henley] ? — A wrestler's phrase [Johnson, 
Clark and Wright, etc.]? "The hip of a chase is no term of woodman's 
craft ; the haunch is. Moreover, what a marvellous expression to say, 
' a hound has a chase on the hip, instead of by! ' " W. R. Arrowsmith, in 
Notes and Queries, VII, p. 375. Arrowsmith quotes Harrington's transla- 
tion of Orlando Furioso, xlvi, st. 117, in which "the valiant knight his 
hold doth shift ... to get the pagan on the hip, And having caught him 
right, he doth him lift . . . and trip," etc. " I'll have our Michael Cassio 



58 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [aCT i. 

I will feed fat the ancient grudge I bear him. 

He hates our sacred nation ; and he rails, 

Even there where merchants most do congregate, 

On me, my bargains, and my well- won thrift. 

Which he calls interest. Cursed be my tribe, 45 

If I forgive him ! 

Bassanio. Shy lock, do you hear? 

Sliylock. I am debating of my present store ; 
And, by the near guess of my memory, 
I cannot instantl}^ raise up the gross 

Of full three thousand ducats. What of that? 50 

Tubal, a wealthy Hebrew of my tribe. 
Will furnish me. But soft ! how many months 
Do 3^ou desire ? — \_To Antonio.'] Rest you fair, good signior ; 
Your worship was the last man in our mouths. 

Antonio. Shylock, albeit I neither lend nor borrow 55 

By taking nor by giving of excess. 
Yet, to supply the ripe wants of my friend, 
I'll break a custom. — Is he yet possess'd 
How much 3^ou would ? 

Shylock. Ay, ay, three thousand ducats. 

Antonio. And for three months. 60 

Shylock. I had forgot : — three months ; you told me so. 
Well then, your bond ; and let me see — but hear you : 
Methought you said you neither lend nor borrow 
Upon advantage. 

on the hip," Othello, II, i, 292; Merchant of Venice, IV, i, 330. " When the 
animal pursued is seized upon the hip, it is finally disabled." Sinrjer. 
May it refer both to wrestling and to hunting ? Wrestlers do not eat their 
antagonists ! — Preference ? — 45. calls interest. Usury and usance were 
synonymous. Antonio thought it wrong to take interest. See note above 
on usance, line 39. — 47. debating of. True? — ^ For of see ''You make 
me study of that," Tempest, II, i, 81; Abbott, 174. — 49. gross = bulk? 
full sum? Late Lat. grossiis, thick. — 51. Tubal. " Money-lenders, since 
the earliest ages, have always hunted in couples." Meiklejohn. — Genesis, 
X, 2.-52. soft. See IV, i, 311; Hamlet, I, v, 58.-53. Rest you f air = 
Heaven grant you fair fortune? So rest you merry, in Romeo and Juliet, 

I, ii, 65;^ As You Like It, V, i, 57. — 54. worship '= worth-ship ? — 56. ex- 
cess, of the principal ? — 57. ripe ; as ripe fruit requires speedy plucking ? 
— 58. possess'd, of information as to? informed? TV, i, 35; Coriolanus, 

II, i, 123; Twelfth Night, II, iii, 131. —59. would = would have? wish? 
require ? — The folio and first quarto have he would. Dyce and Hudson 
change Ae to to<^ ,• two quartos have ye. The first quarto, after 'custom,' 
reads "Are you resolv'd, How nnich he would have?" and Furness pre- 
fers this text. Respective values of these readings? — 01. you told me. 
Spoken to Bassanio ? — 63. Methought. Here me is the indirect (or da- 
tive) object, and thought is impersonal, meaning it seemed; from thyncan, 



SCENE III.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 59 

Antonio. I do never use it. 

Sliylock. When Jacob graz'd his uncle Laban's sheep — 65 
This Jacob from our lioly Abram was, 
As his wise mother wrought iu his behalf, 
The third possessor ; ay, he was the third — 

Antonio. And what of him? did he take interest? 

Sliylock. No, not take interest, not, as you would say, 70 
Directly interest : mark what Jacob did. 
When Laban and himself were comproniis'd 
That all the eanlings which were streak'd and pied 
Should fall as Jacob's hire. . . . 
This was a way to thrive, and he was blest ; 
And thrift is blessing, if men steal it not. 80 

Antonio. This was a venture, sir, that Jacob serv'd for ; 
A thing not in his power to bring to pass. 
But sway'd and fashion'd by the hand of heaven. 
Was this inserted to make interest good? 
Or is your gold and silver ewes and rams? 85 

Shylock. I cannot tell ; I make it breed as fast. — 
But note me, signior. 

Antonio. Mark you this, Bassanio, 

The devil can cite Scripture for his purpose. 
An evil soul, producing holy witness. 

Is like a villain with a smiling cheek, 90 

A goodly apple rotten at the heart. 
O, what a goodly outside falsehood hath ! 

Shylock. Three thousand ducats ; — 'tis a good round sum. 
Three months from twelve ; — then, let me see the rate. — 

to seem ; not thencan, to think. So, in Chancer, him, hem, or hire thoughte 
= it seemed to him, them, or her. — 64. advantage = interest ? — 65. when 
Jacob, etc. Genesis, xxvii, xxx. Ginshurg {AthensRwn, April 28, 1883) 
shows that Sliakespeare here and elsewhere uses the version known as the 
Bishop's Bible (1568). — 72. compromised = agreed? parties to an agree- 
ment? under mutual promise? Lat. com, together; pro, forth; mittere, to 
send. — 73. eanlings = new-horn lambs ?^ A. S. eanian, to bring forth 
young; -I- is diminutive; so is -liyif/. Pope changed the word to yeanlings. 
Needfully? — pied = spotted, mottled, speckled? — Lat. pica, magpie ; Fr. 
pie ; the parti-colored bird. — 79. was blest = received Isaac's blessing 
[Allen]? favored of Heaven? — 84. inserted, in the Bible? by you, in 
your speech? — 86. I make it breed as fast. "This notion is preserved 
in the Greek word for 'interest,' toko?, tokos, that which money brings 
forth." ClarJc and Wright. See line 124. — 88. devil can cite Scrip- 
ture. Yes ! Matthew, iv, 6 ; LiiTce, iv, 10; Psalms, xci, 11, 12. — 89. witness 
= authority [Rolfe] ? testimony. — Are these lines heard by Shylock ? — 
92. goodly outside. So the old texts. Furness is sure we should read 
godly, as Rowe, Pope, Theobald, Hanraer, and Hudson have done. Rightly ? 



GO THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act I. 

Antonio. Well, Shylock, shall we be beholding to you? 95 
ShylocJt. Signior Aotouio, many a time and oft, 

In the Rialto, you have rated me 

About my moneys and m}^ usances : 

Still have I borne it with a patient shrug ; 

For sufferance is the badge of all onr tribe. 100 

You call me misbeliever, cut-throat dog, 

And spet upon my Jewish gaberdine, 

And all for use of that which is mine own. 

Well then, it now appears you need my help : 

Go to, then ; you come to me, and yon say, 105 

' Shylock, we would have moneys : ' you say so ; 

You, that did void your rheum upon my beard, 

And foot me, as you spurn a stranger cur 

Over your threshold : moneys is your suit. 

What should I say to 3'ou ? Should I not saj^-, 110 

' Hath a dog money? Is it possible 

A cur should lend three thousand ducats ? ' Or 

Shall I bend low, and in a bondman's ke}^. 

With bated breath and whisp'ring humbleness, 

Say this : 115 

— 95. beliolding. Frequently found for ^f/ioZtZen in Elizabethan writers 
A. S. be- and healdan, to hold. Craik makes beholden "a corrupted form 
of gehealden, the perfect participle of A. S. healdan, to hold." Rolfe; 
Abbott, 372. — 96. Many a time and oft. So in 1 Henry IV, I, ii, 451; 
2 Henry VI, II, i, 93 ; Tinion, II, i, 19 ; Julius Cxsar, I, i, 37. Is it really pleo- 
nastic? — 99. with a patient slirng. " I learned in Florence how to kiss 
my hand, Heave up my shoulders when they call me dog." Marlowe's Jew 
of Malta, II, ii, p. 2()9. — badge. ' Showing his yellow cap.' Booth's stage 
direction in his Actinr/ Copy. " I prefer," says Booth, "the yellow cap to the 
cross upon the shoulder [said to have been ordered by the Venetian Senate 
to mortify the Jews — but ?] which other actors have worn, my father among 
them." — 100. tribe. Meaning? — " The etymology is thought to be from 
Lat. tri- (akin to tres, three), and bus, family, from </ bhu, to be. A tribus 
is supposed to have been, in the first instance, one of the three families of 
people in Rome, their names being the Itnmyies, Titles, and Luceres." 
t^keat. — 101. misbeliever, jyifiers how ironi 'unbeliever? — 102. spet. 
Used several times in Shakespeare, and once in Milton (Comus, 132). 
Naturally a stronger word than spit? iiee M<isterpieces, p. 37. Compare 
spit, spet, spoilt, spirt. — gaberdine. Span, f/abardina, a coarse frock; 
from f/aban, a great coat ; Old Fr. gaban, a cloak of felt for rainy weather. 
Allied to cabin and eape. Of Celtic origin. Skeat. — "The garment and 
the name are still used by the peasantry in some parts of England." Rolfe. 
— 105. Gro to. "Old phrase of varying import, sometimes of reproach, 
sometimes of encouragement. Hush tip), come on, be off, go ahead, are 
among its meanings." " Hudson. — Tempest, V, i, 208 ; Genesis, xi, 4. — 107. 
rheum. Gr. pev- in peuVojuai, fut. of peew, to flow; pevna, rhenma, a flow. — 
108. spnrn. A. S. speornan; Icel. sperna, to kick. — 114. bated, for 
abated. Lat. ab, from; batere for batuere, to beat; Low Lat. abbatere ; 



SCENE III.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 61 

' Fair sir, you spet on me on Wednesday last ; 
You spurn'd me such a day ; another time 
You call'd me dog ; and for these courtesies 
I'll lend you thus much moneys ' ? 

Antonio. I am as like to call thee so again, 120 

To spet on thee again, to spurn thee too. 
If thou wilt lend this mone}'^, lend it not 
As to thy friends ; for when did friendship take 
A breed of barren metal of his friend ? 

But lend it rather to thiue enemy ; 125 

Who if he break, thou may'st with better face 
Exact the penalties. 

Shylock. Why, look j^'ou, how you storm ! 

I would be friends with 3^ou, and have your love. 
Forget the shames that you have stain'd me with. 
Supply your present wants, aud take no doit 130 

Of usance for my moneys, and you'll not hear me. 
This is kind I offer. 

Bassanio. This were kindness. 

Shylock. This kindness will I show. 

Go with me to a notary ; seal me there 
Your single bond ; and, in a merry sport, 135 

Old Fr. cibatre; Mid. Eng. abaten, to beat down, diminish. — 118. courte- 
sies. "Utter 'courtesies' with strong emphasis — looking up, as you 
'bend low,' with a devilish grin, into Antonio's face." Booth. — 124, 
breed of. The quartos have breed for. Equally good ? — See note to 
line 86. — 12G. who if lie break. In Anglo Saxon, German, Hebrew, and 
Old English authors, the pronoun is not infrequently repeated for the sake 
of rendering the person more definite. This use of lolio as nominative 
without a verb is a Latin idiom, and illustrates what is called the nomina- 
tiviis %)Gndens. Thus in Lord Bacon's Advancement of Learning (Book If, 
X, 12) , " which though it be not true, yet I forbear to note any deficiencies." 

— " Qui si fidem franget ; a proof of Shakespeare's grammar-school instruc- 
tion. He translates as he was taught." Allen ; Abbott, 248, 249. — break 
(his clay). See line 153. — 127. penalties. So the folios. The quartos 
have penalty. — 128. friends. We still use the plural in this way. See 
note on the plural sides in our Macbeth, II, i, 55, and our comments on the 
same in the magazine Education, May, 1887. — 129. shames. Does Shy- 
lock compare Antonio's contumelious words to spittle ? — 130. doit, a small 
Dutch coin, worth about a quarter of a cent. Dutch duit, a doit. Perhaps 
akin to dot. Skeat. — Ger. deut. Perhaps Venetian daottin. Possibly Fr. 
d' huit, of eight, the eighth of a stiver or penny. — 132. kind. Dr. M. 
Jastrow (in Young Israel, May, 1876) argues that Shylock did not intend 
to insist on the forfeiture till after Jessica's elopement and robbery; but 
merely to humiliate the proud Christian and triumph over him. Likely? 

— 135. single = individual, without security? "Single here has been 
explained as unconditioned; as if the condition, being a sport or jest, 
amounted to no condition at all." See Furness. May it not rather mean 



62 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act I. 

If you repay me not on such a day, 

In such a place, such sum or sums as are 

Express'd in the condition, let the forfeit 

Be nominated for an equal pound 

Of your fair flesh, to be cut off and taken 140 

In what part of your body it pleaseth me. 

xintonio. Content, i' faith ; I'll seal to such a bond. 
And say there is much kindness in the Jew. 

Bassanio. You shall not seal to such a bond for me : 
I'll rather dwell in my necessity. 145 

Antonio. Why, fear not, man ; I will not forfeit it: 
Within these two months —7 that's a month before 
This bond expires — I do expect return 
Of thrice three times the value of this bond. 

Sliylock. O father Abram ! what these Christians are, 150 
AYhose own hard dealings teaches them suspect 
The thoughts of otliers ! — Pray you, tell me this : 
If he should break his day, what should I gain 
By the exaction of the forfeiture ? 

A pound of man's flesh, taken from a man, 155 

Is not so estimable, profitable neither, 
As flesh of muttons, beefs, or goats. I say, 

a bond that has no surety, but only a princijjal ? Principal and surety- 
together would constitute a double bond? — merry sport. In Gernutiis, 
the old ballad in Percy's Reliques, a similar band (bond) is called ' a 
merry jest.' See line 163. — 138, 139. forfeit be nominated for an 
equal, etc. = let the forfeit named as an equivalent be a pound [Rolfe] ? 
equal = exact [Schmidt, Elze, Furness, Meiklejohu] ? equivalent [Hud- 
son] ? — " ' For ' is nearly redundant in this passage." Abbott, 148. '•' Not 
nominated-for , but forfeit-for. . . . ' Nominated ' really belongs much 
earlier : * and (in a merry sport) let it be nominated, that if, etc. . . . the for- 
feit (shall) be for,' " etc. Allen. — lY , i, 250. — 139. fair. This suggests Shy- 
lock's darker, Oriental hue [Furness] ? — 141. it pleaseth. The quartos 
omit it. Better ? — Line 27. — 145. dwell = continue ? live ? abide ? — A. S. 
dioellan, to retard, to lead astray. The original sense is to mislead, cause 
to err; whence the intransitive sense of to err, to wander aimlessly, to 
linger, dwell; Mid. Eng. dwellen, to delay, linger; Icel. dcelja, to linger, to 
dwell, tarry. Skeat.— 150. what. CymbeUne, IV, i, 16; Abbott, 2bC). — 
151. teaches. " There were three forms of the plural in Early English, — 
the Northern in es, the Midland in en, the Southern in eth. The third 
plural in -s is extremely common in the folio." Abbott, 332, 333. Pope, 
Clark and Wright, and some others think that Shakespeare is inaccurate 
in his grammar here. On omission of to before such infinitives as suspect, 
Abbott (349) remarks that in Early English there is much inconsistency. — 
153. break, etc. See line 126. — " If you do break your day, assure your- 
self That I will take the forfeit of your bond." Hey wood's Fair Maid of 
the Exchanr/e, ii, 2 (1607). — 156. neither. Allen suggests that this word 
goes with the following, and not with 'profitable.'' — Scan! — 157. niut- 



SCENE III.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 63 

To buy his favor, I extend this friendship : 

If he will take it, so ; if not, adieu ; 

And, for my love, I pray you wrong me not. 160 

Antonio. Yes, Shylock, I will seal unto this bond. 

Shylock. Then meet me forthwith at the notary's. 
Give him direction for this merry bond, 
And I will go and purse the ducats straight, 
See to my house, left in the fearful guard 165 

Of an unthrifty knave, and presently 
I will be with you. - [_ExU. 

Antonio. Hie thee, gentle Jew. — 

The Hebrew will turn Christian : he grows kiud. 

Bassanio. I like not fair terms and a villain's mind. 

Antonio. Come on : in this there can be no dismay ; 170 
My ships come home a month before the day. [Exeunt. 



tons, Ibeefs. Norman French. We still use beeves. "Perhaps Shake- 
speare employed these words to give a qnaint and foreign flavor to Shy- 
lock's talk." Meiklejohn. Likely? — 1 Henry IV, III, iii, 171; ^l.s low 
Like It, III, iii, 52; 2 Henry IV, III, ii, 300. — 149. so = so he it [Rolfe] ? 
very well [Hudson] ?— 164. will go and purse, etc. Has he forgotten 
about Tuhal? Line 51. — 165. fearful. Active or jDassive here ? Warhur- 
ton changed it to fearless. Eightly? Abbott, 3. — See .A^ryr'c?, ninth line 
of next scene. — 166. knave. A. S. cnafa, a hoy; Ger. Jauibe. hoy; Gael. 
cnapach, jonngster; cnap, a knob. Thus the sense is 'knobby'; hence 
stout or well-grown, applied to a lad. Skeat. But the total depravity 
inherent in 'knobby ' boys has given the once innocent knave a bad sense! 
— presently. I, 'i, 179, 183. — Contrast of character in this scene? Is 
Antonio wholly worthy of respect ? Air of verisimilitude in the stipulation 
as to the bond ? Does Bassanio acquiesce too readily ? 



64 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act 



ACT IL 

Scene I. Belmont. A Room in Portia^ s House, 

Flourish of Cornets. Enter the Prince of Morocco and his 
train; Portia, Nerissa, and others attending. 

Morocco. Mislike me not for my complexion, 
The shadow'd livery of the burnish'd snn. 
To whom I am a, neighbour and near bred. 
Brins; me tlie fairest creature northward born, 
Where Phoebus' fire scarce thaws the icicles, 5 

And let us make incision for your loA^e, 
To prove whose blood is reddest, his or mine. 
I tell thee, lady, this aspect of mine 
Hath fear'd the valiant : by my love, I swear 
The best-regarded virgins of our clime 10 

Have loxed it too. I would not change this hue. 
Except to steal your thoughts, my gentle queen. 

Portia. In terms of choice I am not solely led 
By nice direction of a maiden's eyes ; 

Act II. Scene I. ^^ Enter Morochus, a tawnie Moore all in lohite, and 
three or foure folloioers accordingly , vnth Portia, Nerissa, and their trains. 
Flo. Cornets.'' Stage direction, 1st folio. — 1. Mislike. — ,S'o?if/ of Solo- 
mon, i, 6. — Shakespeare uses this word three times; dislike, many times. 
— complexion. Quadrisyl. ? I, i, 8; Abbott, 479.-2. livery (Low Lat. 
liberare, to give freely; Ital. liberare ; Fr. livrer, to deliver), a thing- 
delivered ; as, e.g., a uniform worn by servants. In Elizabethan times 
the word did not couvey any idea of servility or degradation. — burnish'd. 
Would burning he better? 5. Phoebus' = Apollo's, the sun-god's? Gr. 
^aos, phaos, light; <i>oi:^o?, Phoibos, Phoebus, pure, bright, radiant. — 7. 
reddest. They thought the greater the courage, the redder the blood. 
Macbeth, Y, iii, 15 ; Merchant of Venice, III, ii, 86. AVhat good foundation, 
if any, exists for such a belief ? — It is customary in the East for lovers to 
testify the violence of their passion by cutting themselves in the sight 
of their mistresses. Harris. — The grammarians generally disallow the 
superlative in a comiparison between two things; but it is good Old English. 
Ought we to curtail this freedom? — 8. aspect. Accent? Abbott, 490; 
I, i, 54. — 9. fear'd = frightened ? See note on fearful, I, iii, 165. " Fear 
(i.e., frighten) boys with bugs," Taming of the Shreiv, I, ii, 206; Measure 
for Measure, II, i, 2. Like learn, fear had a causative sense in A. S. and 
iEarly Eng. — See Abbott, 291. — 10. best-regarded = most respected? of 
highest rank? — 12. to steal, as a thief , under the disguise of a white or 
fair complexion? — 14. nice direction, fanciful guidance? fastidious esti- 



SCENE I.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 65 

Besides, the lottery of my destiny 15 

Bars me the right of voluntary choosing : 

But if my father had not scanted me, 

And heclg'd me by his wit, to yield myself 

His wife who wins me by that means I told you, 

Yourself, renowned prince, then stood as fair 20 

As any comer I have look'd on 3'et, 

For my affection. 

Morocco. Even for that I thank 3^ou: 

Therefore, I pray you, lead me to the caskets 
To try my fortune. By this scimitar. 

That slew the Sophy and a Persian prince 25 

That won three fields of Sultan Solyman, 
I would o'er-stare the sternest eyes that look. 
Outbrave the heart most daring on the earth, 
Pluck the young sucking cubs from the she-bear, 
Yea, mock the lion when he roars for prey, 30 

To win thee, lady. But, alas the while ! 

niation? — 17. scanted. Icel. skamt, short, brief; slcamta, to dole out; 
skam.tr, short or scant measure; Norweg. skanta, to measure narrowly, 
reckon closely. Skeat. — III, ii, 112 ; V, i, 141. — Is she telling the truth ? — 
18. wit = foresight, wisdom ? Capell and Hudson change this to loilL Well ? 
From \/ wiD, to separate (with the eye) , to know ; Gr. FtS, vid, in tfierv, 
idein, to see; A. S. ivitan, to know. — 20. yourself. Are the compounds 
of m?/, thy, her, etc., with self, still used so ? " Myself am hell." Paradise 
Lost, iv, 75; Abbott, 20. — stood = had stood? would have stood? — fair. 
Satire ? play on the word ? — as fair a chance ? — 24. scimitar. A curved 
sword. Pers. sham, a nail ; sher, a lion, literally ' lion's claw ' ; Pers. 
shimshir ; Ital. scimitar a? Skeat. — 25. Sopliy. " Soffi, and Sojito, an 
auncient word signifying a wise man, learned and skilled in Magike Natu- 
rall. It is growen to be the common name of the Emperour of Persia." 
Minadoi's Italian History of the Warres, etc., Hartwell's translation (1595). 
"The Emperors or Slialis of Persia of one dynasty were called Sophy, or 
more properly 'Sufi,' as the Emperors of Rome were called Caesar." 
White. " Augustus C?esar, Titus Vespasianus, Philip La Bel of France, 
Edward IV of England, Alcibiades of Athens, Ismael, the Sophy of Persia, 
were all high and great spirits, and yet the most beautiful men of their 
times." Bacon's Essay on Beauty. — Did the prince or the scimitar slay? 
Which won the fields? — Gr. a-o<!)6';, sojyhos, wise; allied to <ra</.T?s, sajihes, 
originally ' tasty,' hence of a keen and decided taste, and so clear, evi- 
dent, sure ; further allied to Lat. sapere, to taste, whence sapiens, wise, 
sapient. Skeat. The word is used in Troelfth Nifpit, II, v, 166, and ITI, iv, 
265. — 26. Sultan. Arabic .s« ton, victorious; also ruler, prince. Soly- 
man the Magnificent, who reigned from 1520 to 1566, engaged, in 1535 in 
a disastrous campaign against Persia. — 27. o'er-stare. The first quarto 
has out-stare. Imagine the prince rolling his eyes in a fine frenzy, to 
show his love ! 31. Alas the while = alas for the present state of things 
[Rolfe] ? While is ' time ' as in meanivhile ; ' unsafe the while ' in Mac- 
beth, III, ii, 32; 'woe the while,' Julius Csesar, I, iii, 81, Like ' Woe worth 
the day ! ' in Ezekiel, xxx, 2 ; and ' Alack a day! ' Abbott, 137. — A. S. Moil, 



6(j ^HE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act II. 

If Hercules aucl Lichas play at dice 

Which is the better mau, the greater throw 

May turn by fortune from the weaker hand : 

So is Alcides beaten by his page ; 35 

And so may I, blind fortune leading me, 

Miss that which one unworthier may attain, 

And die with grieving. 

Portia. You must take your chance; 

And either not attempt to choose at all, 

Or swear, before you choose, if you choose wrong 40 

Never to speak to lady afterward 
In waj' of marriage : therefore be advis'd. 

Morocco. Nor will not. Come, bring me unto my chance. 

Portia. First, forward to the temple : after dinner 
Your hazard shall be made. 45 

Morocco. Good fortune then ! 

To make me blest or cursed'st among men. 

\_Gornets^ and exeunt. 

Scene II. Venice. A Street. 

Entei' Launcelot. 

Launcelot. Certainly, my conscience will serve me to run 
from this Jew my master. The fiend is at miue elbow and 



a time; hioilum, dative plu., at times, 'whilom'; Ger, loeile ; Icel. hvila, 
a place of rest. Probably allied to Lat. qiiies, rest. — II, ii, 01. — 32. Her- 
cules. The most celebrated of the Grecian legendary heroes, son of 
Jupiter, but reputed son of Amphitryon, and so grandson of Alca^us, from 
whom he is called Alcides (line 35). In Ovid {Metam., ix, 155), Lichas 
is mentioned as the page who brought Hercules the tunic that had been 
dipped in the j)oisoned "blood of the Centaur Nessus. See Class. Diet. — 
33. which, etc. = to decide which, etc. ? "The Elizabethan writers ob- 
jected to scarcely any ellipsis, provided the deficiency could be easily sup- 
plied from the context. Abbott, 382. — 35. page. Theobald suggested 
this in place of the old reading, rarje? Could a reasonable meaning be 
extracted from the latter?— 42. advis'd = deliberate ? counselled? I, i, 
142. — 43. Nor will not. I, ii, 23. — 44. Temple = church in which the 
oath is to be taken? Why temple, rather than church? — The oath must 
be taken on the Bible ; and Bibles were kept in churches, not in private 
houses. Keightley is sure that it should be table, not ' temple.' — 46. blest. 
Shortened from blessedest? "The force of the superlative in carseiVst 
retroacts on blest." Hudson. See III, ii, 288, where the superlative force 
seems thrown forward upon umvearied. Abbott, 398. — Why is 'good ' an 
epithet of Fortune ? Could ' good fortune ' make him ' cursed'st ' ? Is for- 
tune addressed ? — Appropriateness of this scene. Does Morocco's prince 
represent vaiu-glory ? Is he wholly concerned with exteriors ? 



SCENE II.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 67 

tempts me, saying to me, ' Gobbo, Lauiicelot Gobbo, good 
Laimcelot,' or ' good Gobbo,' or ' good Laimcelot Gobbo, use 
your legs, take the start, run away.' My conscience says, 
' No ; take heed, honest Launcelot ; take heed, honest Gob- 
bo,' or, as aforesaid, ' honest Launcelot Gobbo ; do not run ; 
scorn running with thy heels.' Well, the most courageous 
fiend bids me pack : ' Via ! ' says the fiend ; ' away ! ' says 
the fiend ; ' for the heavens, rouse up a brave mind,' says the 
fiend, ' and run.' Well, my conscience, hanging about the 
neck of my heart, says very wisely to me, 'My honest friend 
Launcelot, being an honest man's son,' — or rather an honest 
woman's son, — well, my conscience says, 'Launcelot, budge 
not.' 'Budge,' says the fiend. 'Budge not,' says my con- 
science. 'Conscience,' say I, 'you counsel well;' 'Fiend,' 
say I, ' you counsel well: ' to be ruled by my conscience, I 
should stay with the Jew my master, who, God bless the 
mark, is a kind of devil ; and, to run away from the Jew, I 
should be ruled by the fiend, who, saving your reverence, is 
the devil himself. Certainly the Jew is the very devil incar- 
nation ; and, in my conscience, my conscience is a kind of 
hard conscience, to offer to counsel me to stay with the Jew. 
The fiend gives the more friendly counsel : I will run, fiend ; 
my heels are at your commandment ; I will run. 25 



Scene II. For stage directions, the old editions read, Enter the Clovme 
alone. We may remark that in these Launcelot is invariably si^elled 
Launcelet. — 1. serve. Reconcile this word with the attitude of con- 
science in what follows ! — 8. scorn runiiiug with thy heels. Steevens 
proposed (perhaps roguishly!) to read, "scorn running; loithe {i.e., tie up 
with a loithe) thy heels ! " But, as Douce asks, who ever heard of a person 
binding up his own heels to prevent running ? — In Mitch Ado, III, iv, 45, we 
have, " I scorn that with my heels." "The logical construction is, ' With 
thy heels scorn running.'" White. "The play upon words is obvious." 
Rolfe. — Part for whole, by synecdoche? — 0. Via! Ital. meaning Away! 
Found also in Merry Wives, II, ii, 136. — Lat. via, way. Most likely put 
for veha, Sans, vaha, a road, from vah, to carry ; Lat. veh-ere^ Skeat. — It 
was used to encourage horses. Markham. — 10. for the heavens = for 
Heaven's sake. " 'For the Heavens ' was an oath." White. "To make 
the fiend conjure Launcelot to do a thing for Heaven's sake, is a specimen 
of that 'acute nonsense ' which Barrow makes one of the species of wit." 
Hudson. But Mason, to whom the joke had not been explained, proposed 
to read haven for heavens! The phrase is found also in Much Ado, II, i, 
41. — To he ruled. Ahhott, 356. — 18, 19. bless the mark. " Perhaps 
the mark of the cross." MeiMejohn. Possibly the mark set on idolaters. 
Ezelciel, ix, 6. F. J. Child. — An interjected apology for some expression 
of questionable propriety? 1 Henry IV, I, iii, .56.-20. Saving your 
reverence = if I may say it without irreverence ? except your reverence? 
— 21. incarnation. The first quarto has incarnal. Launcelot likes to 



68 THE Mi^^MHAJSTT OF VENICE. [act il. 



Enter Old Gobbo, tvith a basket, 

Gohho. Master young mau, you ! I pray you, which is the 
way to master Jew's? 

Lamicelot. \_Aside.~\ O heavens ! this is my true -begotten 
father ; who, beiug more than sancl-blind, high-gravel-bUnd, 
knows me not : — I will try confusions with him. 30 

Gohho. Master young gentleman, I pray you, which is the 
way to master Jew's ? 

Launcelot. Turn up on your right hand at the next turn- 
ing, but at the next turning of all, on your left ; marry, at 
the very next turning, turn of no hand, but turn down indi- 
rectly to the Jew's house. 30 

Gohho. By God's sonties, 't will be a hard way to hit. 
Can you tell me whether one Launcelot, that dwells with 
him, dwell with him or no? 

Launcelot. Talk you of young Master Launcelot ? — 
\^Aside.'] Mark me now ; now will I raise the waters. — 
\_To liim.'] Talk you of young Master Launcelot? 42 

Gohho. No master, sir, but a poor man's son : his father, 
though I say 't, is an honest exceeding poor man, and, God 
be thanked, well to live. 45 

parade his learning. See III, v, 45 to 51. --29. Sand-blind. " As if sand 
were in the eye, or perhaps floating before it." Rolfe. See Webster's Diet. 
"We use the term 'snow-blind'; and this suggests that sand-blindness 
may be caused by the glare of the sunshine on white or yellow sand. — We 
have also 'stone-blind,' meaning blind as a stone. 'Sand' is perhaps a 
corruption of the A. S. sam, equivalent to the Lat. se')ni, half." ClarJc and 
Wright. — high-gravel-blind. Because high gravel is more than fine 
sand, old Gobbo must be nearly stone blind, Launcelot would say? — 
21. devil. Keightley, as if incapable of fun, solemnly proposes to read 
Devirs! — 30. confusions. The first quarto has 'conclusions' (adopted by 
Johnson, Steevens, Malone, and others) ; " but Launcelot would not have 
given a hard word so correctly." Clark and Wright. Is 'confusions' a 
blunder ? — 33. Turn, etc. Similar puzzling directions are found in Ter- 
ence's Adelphi, IV, ii, 42. — 36. marry = By the Virgin Mary ! Like ' By 
'r Lady!' 'By our Lady!' — 37. sonties = saints ? sanctities? Lat. scmc- 
tiis, Fr. saint, a sacred person; plu. saints, saints, Old Fr. saunetes ; Lat. 
sanctitas; Fr. saintete, sanctity; Lat. sanitas ; Fr. sante', health. — Prof. 
George Allen, often cited by Furness, interprets the oath of Launcelot 
thus : " By God's dear saints. ' Saint ' = (as in Scotch) saunt ; sauntie (as 
in Scotch), diminutive uTroKopta-riKw? " [i.e., as in child-talk expressive of en- 
dearment] . — 42. master, " which we have flattened into mister, formerly 
meant something as a title of respect." Hudson. — "Whosoever studieth 
the laws of the" realm, who studieth in the universities, who professeth 
liberal sciences ; and, to be short, who can live idly, and without manual 
labor, and will l)ear the port, charge, and coimtenance of a gentleman, he 
shall be called master." Commomvealth of England, by Thomas Smith 
(1612). — 43. raise the waters = raise a storm [Meiklejohn] ? have some 



SCENE II.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 69 

Launcelot. Well, let his father be what a' will, we talk of 
youug Master Launcelot. 

Gobbo. Your w^orship's friend and Launcelot ! 

Launcelot. But I pray you, ergo, old man, ergo, I beseech 
you, talk you of young Master Launcelot ! 50 

Gobbo. Of Launcelot, an't please your mastership. 

Launcelot. Ergo, Master Launcelot. Talk not of Master 
Launcelot, father ; for the young gentleman — according to 
fates and destinies and such odd sayings, the sisters three 
and such branches of learning — is indeed deceased, or, as 
you would say in plain terms, gone to heaven. 50 

Gobbo. Marry, God forbid ! the boy was the very staff of 
my age, my very prop. 

Launcelot \^Asicle^ . Do I look like a cudgel or a hovel-post, 
a staff or a prop? [To /«m.] Do you know me, father? 60 

Gobbo. Alack the day ! I know 3'ou not, young gentleman : 
but, I pray you, tell me, is my boy — God rest his soul ! — 
alive or dead? 

Launcelot. Do you not know me, father? 

Gobbo. Alack, sir, I am sand-blind ; I know you not. G5 

fun [Hudson] make him weep ? — 45. well to live = with every prospect 
of a long life [Furness] ? well off [Schmidt, etc.]? — 46. what a' will. 
"The rapidity of Elizabethan pronunciation frequently changed he into 
'a." Abbott, 402. —50. Talk you of young Master Launcelot! A 
question ? or a command? The early editions differ. — " Launcelot wliimsi= 
cally takes his father to task for disrespect to himself " [the son]. White. 
— 49. ergo ^ therefore. "Like the Gravedigger in Hamlet, he under- 
stands, after a fashion, the Latin word he uses, and he rejoins, ' But I pray 
you, ergo, old man, err/o, I beseech you, talk you of young Master Launce- 
lot' ; i.e., ' And therefore, because I am your worship,' and he is my friend, 
you should speak of him as Master Launcelot." White. — " Talk logically; 
let us keep to our ergo's." Capell. — Many put a question-mark after this 
' Launcelot.' ■* Judiciously ? — 51. an = if. A. S. and ; Icel. cnda, moreover, 
if. The Icelandic use of enda in the sense not only of moreover, but of if, 
is the obvious origin of the use of the Mid. Eng. and in the sense of if. In 
order to differentiate the senses, it became at last usual to drop the final d 
when the word was used in the sense of if. Skeat. I, ii, 40; II, iv, 10. — 
51. mastership. Launcelot has gained his point; his father has called 
him "your mastership." Furness. — 53. father. The peasantry still call 
old people father and mother. — 54. the sisters three. The Fates {Parcpe. 
or Moirse) ; Clotho (spinner), who spun the thread of life; Lachesis 
(allotter) , who allotted man his destiny or ' span ' ; and Atropos (un- 
changeable) , who severed the thread. See Class. Diet. — 59. hovel-post. 
= a post to support the roof of a circular hovel or shed? — prop. IV, i, 
366. — 60. Do you know. Dyce and Keightley insert noi before 'know.' 
Rightly? — 61. alack. Note on line 31, preceding scene. — Probably a 
corruption of ah! Lord! or, ah! Lord Christ. Otherwise it may be re- 
ferred to Mid. Eng. lak, signifying loss, failure, defect, misfortune. . . . 
Thus a^acA; would mean ah! failure, or, ah ! a loss ; and alackaday would 



70 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [aCT IT. 

Launcelot. Nay, indeed, if you had your eyes, 3^011 might 
fail of the knowing me : it is a wise father that knows his 
own chikl. Well, old man, I will tell you news of your son. 
\_Kneels.'] Give me your blessing : truth will come to light ; 
murder cannot be hid long ; a mau's son may, but in the 
end truth will out. 71 

Gobbo. Pray you, sir, stand up. I am sure you are not 
Launcelot, my boy. 

Launcelot. Pray you, let's have no more fooling about it, 
but give me your blessing : I am Launcelot, 3'our boy that 
was, your son that is, your child that shall be. 76 

Gobbo. I cannot think you are my son. 

Launcelot. I know not what I shall think of that : but I 
am Launcelot, the Jew's man, and I am sure Margery your 
wife is my mother. 80 

Gobbo. Her name is Margery, indeed: I'll be sworn, if 
thou be Launcelot, thou art mine own flesh and blood. Lord 
worshipped might he be ! what a beard hast thou got ! thou 
hast got more hair on thy chin than Dobbin my fill-horse has 
on his tail. 

Launcelot. It should seem, then, that Dobbin's tail grows 
backward : I am, sure he had more hair of his tail than I 
have of my face, when I last saw him. 88 

Gobbo. Lord! how art thou changed! How dost thou 

stand for ah ! lack on (the) day, i.e., ah ! a loss to-day. Skeat. — 71. truth 
will out. " Stage tradition, not ini^jrobably from the time of Shakespeare 
himself, makes Launcelot, at this point, kneel with his hack to the sand- 
blind old father, who, of course, mistakes his long back-hair for a beard " ! 
Staunton. — 70. child that shall he. The phraseology of the Answer 
to the Gloria, " as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be," runs 
confusedly through his head? — "He puri)osely inverts the order, 'your 
child that was, your boy that is, your sou that shall be.'" Ilvdson. — 
Launcelot's incongruous nonsense, which he rattles off to hear himself talk, 
is not half so funny as the sober attempts of some critics to explain his 
remarks as serious, logical, and philosophical. Malone thinks " Launcelot 
probably indulges himself in talking nonsense" ! Steevens says Launcelot 
" may mean that he shall liereafter prove his claim to the title of child by 
his dutiful behavior " ! See note on line 21. — 82. LiOrd TV^orshipped = a 
lord worshipful (meaning that he has beard enough to receive the title 
of lordship) [Rev. J. Hunter]? Abbott, 313, says "might" is here used 
optatively. Probable? — what a heard. See note above on line 71.— 
84. fill-horse = thill-horse [Fallows] ? Fills and fill-horse are common 
expressions for ' shafts ' and ' shaft-horses ' in New England and in por- 
tions of Old England. Thills is common. "F and th are frequently 
interchanged both by individuals and by nations. Thus the Russians 
write Feodor for Theodore.'" Meiklejohn. — Troihis and Cressida, III, ii, 
M. — 91. 'gree. Lat. ad, to; gratmn, favor; grains, pleasing; Old Fr. a, 



SCENE II.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 71 

and thy master agree ? I have brought him a present. How 
'gree you now ? 

Launcelot. Well, well : but, for mine own part, as I have 
set up my rest to run away, so I will not rest till I have run 
some ground. M3' master's a very Jew : give Mm a present ! 
give him a halter : I am famished in his service ; you may 
tell ever}^ finger I have with my ribs. Father, I am glad 
you are come i give me your present to one Master Bassanio, 
who indeed gives rare new liveries : if I serve not him, I will 
run as far as God has any ground. — O rare fortune! here 
comes the man : — to him, father ; for I am a Jew if I serve 
the Jew any longer. 101 

Enter Bassanio, loith Leonardo and other FoUoioers. 

Bassanio. You may do so ; but let it be so hasted that 
su^Dper be ready at the farthest by five of the clock. See 
these letters delivered ; put the liveries to, making, and desire 
Gratiano to come anon to my lodging. [^Exit a Servant. 

Launcelot. To him, father. 106 

Gobbo. God bless your worship ! 

Bassanio. Gramercy ! wouldst thou aught with me ? 

Gobbo. Here's my son, sir, a poor bo}^, — 

Launcelot. Not a poor boy, sir, but the rich Jew's man ; 
that would, sir, as my father shall specify — ill 

according to; gre, gret, pleasure; agreen, to receive favorably; Mid. Eng, 
agreen, to assent. ' tSkeat. Gree, for ' agree ' is found in tlie writings of 
tiie famous Fuller (1G08-1()71). — As to dropped prefixes, see Abbott, KiO.— 
92. set up my rest = determined to stand upon the cards I have in my 
hand? made up my mind [Dyce, Schmidt, etc.]? In primero, and some 
other card games, the highest stake one was disposed to venture was called 
the rest. Quibble on rest? — All's Well, 11, i, 135; Comedy of Errors, IV, 
iii, 24; Borneo and Juliet, Y, iii, 110. — 97. give me your preseut to, 
etc. The me is an instance of the ethical dative {Abbott, 220), used when 
the person referred to by the pronoun is for the moment vaguely imagined 
to have some interest in the action, or to be affected by it. The me 
is nearly expletive or redundant, as often mihi in Latin. Thus, "He 
plucked me ope his doublet." Jidius Cxsar, T, ii, 25G, 257. — 9(5. tell 
every finger, etc. = use my ribs for counting my fingers [Meiklejohn] ? 
count my ribs with my fingers? — 99. as far as . . . ground. Ground is 
scarce in Venice ! " The lower orders in Venice regard the mainland with 
an admiration," etc. Knight, quoted by Rolfe. Furness inclines to credit 
the remark to Miss Martineau. — 104. liveries. See note on II, i, 2. — 105. 
anon. A. S. an, one; on an, in one moment, once for all. The a is con- 
vertible with in either syllable. Mid. High Ger. in ein, in one (moment). 
Skeat.—lO^. Gramercyo Fr. grand merci, nmch thanks. See grand, 
mercy in Masterpieces in English Literature, page 54.— 111. specify. Mr. 
Bishop, convinced that Launcelot is thinking of the pantry, suggests that 



72 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act II. 

Gohho. He hath a great infection, sir, as one would say, 
to serve — 

Launcelot. Indeed, the short and tlie long is, I serve the 
Jew, and have a desire, as my father shall specify, — 115 

Gohho. His master and he, saving your worship's rever- 
ence, are scarce cater-cousins — 

Launcelot. To be brief, the very truth is, that the Jew, 
liaving done me wrong, doth cause me, as my father, being, 

1 hope, an old man, shall frutify unto you, — 120 

Gohho. I have here a dish of doves that I would bestow 
upon your worship ; and my suit is — 

Launcelot. In very brief, the suit is impertinent to myself, 
as your worship shall know by this honest old man ; and, 
though I say it, though old man, yet, poor man, my father. 

Bassanio. One speak for both. — What would you? 126 

Launcelot. Serve you, sir. 

Gohho. That is the very defect of the matter, sir. 

Bassanio. I know thee well ; thou hast obtain'd thy suit. 
Shylock thy master spoke with me this day, 130 

And hath preferr'd thee ; if it be preferment 
To leave a rich Jew's service, to become 
The follower of so poor a gentleman. 

Launcelot. The old proverb is very well parted between 

we read spicify ! — 117. cater-cousins = fourth cousins (from Fr. quatre, 
four) [Hudson] ? allied not only by blood, but by accidentally meeting at 
the same table, where they are catered for together [Hales and Meiklejohn] ? 
' caper-cousins,' a Lancashire expression for great friends [Halliwell] ? 
May the word come from gueteur [collector, searcher], and mean as good 
friends as two friars begging for rival convents [Clark and Wright] ? — "I 
was not half cater-cousins with him, because, by his meanes, I had lost my 
cloak, and sup't upon a mule." Guzman de Alfarache, by Mabbe (1623). 
— 120. frutify = fructify, i.e., hold forth [Hudson]? certify [Clark and 
Wright] ? Verify ? Lauucelot's language may be affected by recollections of 
the pantry [Bishop] ? Note on 111, sapm. — 121. dish of doves. " A present 
thns given, and in our days too, and of doves, is not uncommon in Italy." 
C. A.^Broivn, quoted at length by Furness, q.v. — Had Shakespeare been in 
Italy ? — 125. thou.i^h old inau, yet. Straighten this logic ! — 128. defect 
her3, and infect i on h\ line 112 = what? — 131. preferred = recommended 
for promotioii [Meikle.iohn] ? promoted ? chosen ratlier ? Double sense here ? 

2 Honry VI, IV, vii, (lil ; Lear, I, i, 267. — 131. old proverb.— Which has 
the grace of God, Shylock or Bassanio ? — " The grace of God is geir [gear, 
preparation, equipment] enough." Ray's Proverbs, edition of 1670. The 
editors generally concur with White in saying, " I can find no allusion [to 
such proverl)] either in the works of Shakespeai'e's commentators, or else- 
where." We venture with some dififidence to suggest that Launcelot is 
quoting, and accni'ately enough for liim, the words of the Lord to St. Paul, 
" My grace is sufiHcient for thee." This was in answer to Paul's repeated 
petition that the ' thorn in the flesh ' might depart from him. 2 Corinthians, 



SCENE II.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 73 

my master Shy lock and you, sir : you have the grace of God, 
sir, and he hath enough. 13G 

Bassanio. Thou speak'st it well. — Go, father, with thy sou. — • 
Take leave of thy old master, aud inquire 
My lodging out. — Give him a livery [ To his followers. 

More guarded than his fellows' : see it done. 140 

Launcelot. Father, in. — I cannot get a service, no ; I have 
ne'er a tongue in my head. — Well, if any man in Italy have a 
fairer table which doth offer to swear upon a book ! — I shall 
have good fortune. — Go to, here's a simple line of life ! here's 
a small trifle of wives : alas ! fifteen wives is nothing ! aleven 
widows and nine maids is a simple coming-in for one man ; 
and then to 'scape drowning thrice, and to be in peril of my 
life with the edge of a feather-bed, — here are simple 'scapes. 
Well, if Fortune be a woman, she's a good wench for this 
gear. — Father, come; I'll take my leave of the Jew in the 
twinkling of an eye. \_ExeiLnt Launcelot and Old Gohho. 

xii, 8, 9. — 140. guarded, braided? trimmed? ornamented ? — Tlie broi- 
dered edging guarded (protected) the cloth from wear. Stavnton, mid 
Rol/e. Old Fv. f/arder, or r/uarder, to keep watch, guard; Old High Ger. 
VKirten, to watch. 'Ward' is a doublet of 'guard.' From v^ war, to 
guard. Skeat. See note on I, i, 130. — "The guards are but slightly 
basted on." Much Ado, I, i, 253. 'In a long motley coat guarded'with 
yellow.' Henry VIII, Prologue, 16. — 142. Well, if any man, etc. = 
Well, if any man in Italy have a fairer table, which doth not only promise, 
hut offer to swear upon a book, that I shall have good fortune [Hudson, 
following Tyrwhitt] ? Well, if any man in Italy, which doth offer to swear 
upon a book have a fairer table (and having' thus admired his table, he 
breaks off to predict his good fortune. The act of expanding his hand 
reminds him of laying it on the book in taking an oath) [Jolmson, White, 
etc.] ? Well, I'll be hanged if any man in Italy have a fairer table, etc. 
[Clark aud Wright] ? Well, if any man in Italy "have a fairer table! which 
doth (equivalent, as in Greek or Latin, to for it doth) offer to sAvear, etc. 
[Allen, and Furness] ? — In chiromancy or palmistry, the table line, or line 
of fortune, is the one running from the forefinger, below the other fingers, 
to the side of the hand; the natural line is the one running through the 
middle of the palm; the line of life is the one which encircles the ball of 
the thumb. The spa(;e between the first two is called the niensta or table. 
Rolfe. — "In Merry Wives, Mrs. Quickly addresses Fenton, 'I'll be sworn 
on a book she loves you ' ; a vulgarism which is now superseded by another 
of the same import, 'I'll take my fMble oath of it.'" Malone.— l^^. 
simple = poor, mean [Clark and Wright] ? See note on 'simple' in our 
edition of Hamlet, I, ii, 97. Like slnfile in Macbeth (see our edition), I, iii, 
140; vi, 16. — 145. aleA^^en. 'A vulgarism (and archaism) for eleven.'' 
J)yce. —The base is dn-luf, or dn-lif, allied to Gothic ainlif. Skeat. But 
let us not grow pedantic over Launcelot's blunders! — 146. coming in = 
arrival ? income ? or ? — 148. edge of a featlier-bed. A cant phrase to 
signify the danger of marrying. Warburtori. — Vie has heard of the 
' feather-edge ' of a sword or other cutting instrument, and it is mixed 
in his muddled mind Avith feather-beds ? — 149. gear. I. i, 110. — 151. of 
an eye. These words are not in the folio, but in the first quarto. Are 



74 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act li. 

Bassanio. I pray thee, good Leonardo, think on this. 
These things being bought and orderly bestovv'd, 
Return in haste ; for I do feast to-night 
My best-esteem'd acquaintance : hie thee, go. 1515 

Leonardo. My best endeavours shall be done herein. 

Enter G rati and. 

Gratiano. Where is your master? 

Leonardo. Yonder, sir, he walks. \_Exit. 

Gratiano. Signior Bassanio ! 

Bassanio. Gratiano I 

Gratiano. I have a suit to you. 

Bassanio. You have obtain'd it. IGO 

Gratiano. You must not deny me. I must go 
With 3'ou to Belmont. 

Bassanio. Why, then yon must. But hear thee, Gratiano ; 
Thou art too wild, too rude, and bold of voice ; — 
Parts that become thee happily enough 165 

And in such eyes as ours appear not faults ; 
But where the}" are not known, why, there they show 
Something too liberal. Pray thee, take pains 
To allay with some cold drops of modesty 
Thy skipping spirit, lest through th}' wild behaviour 170 

they necessary to the sense ? — .153. bestow'd = arranged [Meiklejohn] ? 
of course (bestowed) on board the ship [Fnrness] ? put away, disposed of 
[Rolfe] ? — From s/ sto for sta, to stand. A. S. stoio, a place. For he-, 
see Masterpieces, pp. 2(5, 207. — Is it obsolete in this sense ? — Luke, xii, 17, 
18; 2 Kings, Y, 24:. — 155. hie thee. From v^ ki, to sharpen, excite; Gr. 
Ktetv, Jciein, to go, to move; Lat. ciere, to summon, cause to go; citKS, 
quick; A. S. higian; Mid. Eng. Men, to hasten. — thee is for th.ou, which 
was pronounced so lightly as to sound like thee. See our edition of Macbeth, 
I, V, 23. — " Thee, thus used, follows imperatives which, being themselves 
emphatic, require an unemphatic pronoun. The Elizabethans reduced thon 
to thee. We have gone farther, and rejected it altogether." Abbott, 205, 
212. See line 155. — 1()3. hear tliee. Thee is for thov, as iu 'fare thee 
well ' ? See the preceding note. — 1G8. liberal = gross, coarse [Johnson] ? 
licentious [Clark and Wright] ? wanton [Hudson] ? free, reckless (but 
not 'licentious,' as it is in Much Ado, IV, i, 89) [Rolfe]? over-free? — 
Hamlet, IV, vii, 109.— From \/ iajbh. Sans, lubh, to desire ; Lat. Ubet, lubet, 
it pleases. The original sense seems to have been ' acting at pleasure ' ; 
Lat. liber, free; liberalis, befitting a free man. SJ,-eat. — ti\Ke pains. 
The folio has 'paine.' Shakespeare has ^)r//» 6- in V, i, 180. Fnrness would 
print pains here. — Gr. noLvri, poine; Lat. pama, penalty ; Fr. peine, a pain, 
penalty. — 109. cold drops. See "Sprinkle cool patience," in Hamlet, 
III, iv, 122. — 170. skipping = thoughtless [Meiklejohn] ? frolicsome 
[Fvolfe] ? Macbeth, I, ii, 30; 1 Hcnnj TV, III, ii, GO, " the skipping king, 
he ambled up and down." — From V skap, to throw ; Irish, sgiob, to snatch ; 



SCENE II.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. lb 

I be misconstrued in the place I go to, 
And lose my hopes. 

Gratiano. Signior Bassanio, hear me : 

If I do not put on a sober habit, 
Talk with respect, and swear but now and then, 
Wear prayer-books in my pocket, look demurely, 175 

Nay more, while grace is saying, hood mine eyes 
Thus with my hat, and sigh, and say ' amen,' 
Use all the observance of civility. 
Like one well studied in a sad ostent 
To please his gran dam, never trust me more. 180 

Bassanio. Well, we shall see your bearing. 

Gratiano. Nay, but I bar to-night : you shall not gauge me 
By what we do to-night. 

Bassanio. No, that were pity : 

I would entreat you rather to put on 

Your boldest suit of mirth, for we have friends 185 

That purpose merriment. But fare you well ; 
I have some business. 



Mid. Eng. sJcippen, to leap lightly, pass over quickly ; Sans, kship (stand- 
ing for skip), to throw, move quickly. Hkeat. — Is spirit a monosyllable 
here? necessarily? Must we have hut ten syllables? Ahhott, 4(53. 
Shakespeare takes great liberties in the structure of his verse ; but some 
of the critics seek "to fetter him ? — 171. inisconstrued. Printed ' mis- 
consterd ' in folio 1; 'misconstrued' in Jvliiis Cxsar, V, iii, 84; ' miscou- 
stred ' in the quartos. — Accent? — 173. habit = dress ? behavior? — 175. 
deiniirely. Lat. de, of; mores, manners; Old Fr. rfe mnrs = Old Fr. de 
hons wars, of good manners. Skeat.- — Trench shows that demure was 
once used in a favorable sense. Is the suftix -ly proj)er here? — 176. is 
saying. "In Shakespeare's day the construction in sai/im/, or a-saying, 
was going out of use, and the verbal noun in -infi was beginning to be 
regularly used in a passive sense." Jiolfe. — Says Marsh (Lectures on the 
En.f/lish Lanf/7(ac/e, p. 052), "The preposition on or a [in such phrases as 
a-hn ilding , a-makinr/, etc.] was dropped about the beginning of the eigh- 
teenth century; but it is still understood" [«.e., supplied mentally]. He 
strenuously objects to such expressions as is beinr/ built, and thinks [p. 050, 
ibid.] it would be better to " go back to the primitive construction, which 
the popular good sense and grammatical instincts of humble English life 
have still preserved, and say, with our fathers, ' The ark was a preparing,' 
' The house was in building.' " — The English form m-inq is well discussed 
in Gibbs's Fhilolof/ircd Studies, pp. 08 to 103, and in his Teutonic Etymoloqv, 
pp. 27, 28, 80, 81. See Abbott, 372; White's Words and their Uses, chap, 
xi, p. 334. — hood mine eyes. Hats were worn at meals? While grace 
was saying, they sometimes pulled them down over their eyes ? — They are 
still worn in the House of Commons, and at the installation banquets of 
the Knights of the Garter.— 179. studied in a sad ostent = trained to 
put on a sober aspect [Rolfe] ? — . . . "Did bloody vapors rain For sad 
ostent." Chapman's Homer (1,598). — A. S. sard, sated"; akin to Lat. .sat, .satis ; 
V SAT, full; Mid. Eng. sad, serious, discreet, sober, heavy. Skeat.— ostent, 



76 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [aCT II. 

Gratiano. And I must to Lorenzo and the rest ; 
But we will visit you at supper-time. \^Exeu7it. 

Scene III. The Same. A Room in SliylocWs House. 
Enter Jessica and Launcelot. 

Jessica. I am sorry thou wilt leave my father so : 
Our house is hell, and thou, a merry devil, 
Didst rob it of some taste of tediousness. 
But fare thee well ; there is a ducat for thee. 
And, Launcelot, soon at supper shalt thou see 5 

Lorenzo, Vvdio is thy new master's guest : 
Give him this letter ; do it secretly ; 
And so farewell : I would not have my father 
See me in talk with thee. 

Launcelot. Adieu ! tears exhibit my tongue. Most beau- 
tiful pagan, most sweet Jew, adieu ! these foolish drops do 
somewhat drown my manly spirit : adieu ! 12 

Jessica. Farewell, good Launcelot. — \_Exit Launcelot. 
Alack, what heinous sin is it in me 

To be asham'd to be my father's child ! 15 

But though I am a daughter to his blood, 
I am not to his manners. O Lorenzo ! 
If thou keep promise, I shall end this strife, 
Become a Christian and thy loving wife. \^Exit. 

Lat. oh, before; tendere, to stretch; ostendere, to spread before one, to 
.s/iow, display. See II, viii, 44; Henry V, Act V, Chorus, 21. — 188. I must 
to= I must go to? Abbott, 405. Were ellipses more allowable in Shakc- 
pearg's time than now ? — Use of the Gobbos in the play ? in this scene ? 
Pro,2;ress in the plot ? Development or revelation of character in this scene ? 
Do Bassanio's strictures on Gratiano (l(i2 to 172) balance or answer any 
' former censure of an affected precision ' ? 

Scene III. 5. soon seems to be used pleonastically [Clark and Wright]? 
as in Comedy of Errors, I, ii, 2G; III, ii, 171 ; Eiehard III, IV, iii, 31. See 
Marsh's Lechirest on the Enr/lish Lanr/uar/e, p. 580, and pp. 707. 708 of his 
Appendix. — 0. in talk. The folios omit in. Better iuserted? — 10. exhibit 
= inliibit [Clark and Wright] ? express or speak for [Eccles and Furness] ? — 
11. foolish drops. So in The Tempest, III, i, 73, 74. "I am a fool to weep 
at what I am glad of " ; and weepins: is spoken of as foolish in Macbeth, IV, 
ii, 28, 29. — 14. what = what a? JvHvs Cxmr, I, iii, 42, " Cassius, what 
night is this! " Abbott, 8(i and 2.50, dves examples of the omission of o, or 
kind of. after v)hc(t, as in Richard III, I, iv, 22, "what dreadful noise of 
waters in mine ears! " — heinous. A. S. hatian, to hate. This epithet 
is ai)plied to a tiger in Titiis Ayidroniciis ! — 18, 19. strife . . . wife. 
"When the scenery was not changed, or the arrangements were so defec- 
tive that the change was not easily perceptible, rhyme was, perhaps, desir- 



SCENE IV.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 77 

Scene IV. The Same. A Street. 
Enter Gratiano, Lorenzo, Salarino, and Salanio. 

Lorenzo. Nay, we will slink away in supper-time. 
Disguise us at my lodging, and return, 
All in an hour. 

Gratiano. We have not made good preparation. 

Salarino. We have not spoke us yet of torch-bearers. 5 

Salanio. 'T is vile, unless it may be quaintly order'd, 
And better, in my mind, not undertook. 

Lorenzo. 'T is now but four o'clock : we have two hours 
To furnish us. — 

Enter Launcelot, icitli a letter. 

Friend Launcelot, what's the news? 

Launcelot. An it shall please you to break up this, it shall 
seem to signify. 11 

Lorenzo. I know the hand : in faith, 't is a fair hand ; 
And whiter than the paper it writ on 
Is the fair hand that writ. 

Gratiano. Love-news, in faith. 

Ijauncelot. By your leave, sir. 

Lorenzo. Whither goest thou? 15 

able to mark that a scene was finished." Abbott, 515. — Does Jessica's 
language place her in a favorable light ? Could this scene well be spared ? 
The home life of Jessica ? Does she act in this play like a veritable Hebrew ? 
Scene IV. 2. disguise us. Such reflexive use is common in Shake- 
speare. See note on III, ii, 227. — They are preparing a farewell enter- 
tainment as a 'send-off to Bassanio? — 5. spoke us of = engaged for 
ourselves? bespoken. Pope followed the fourth folio in changing xis to as. 
Well? — 6. quaintly = oddly ? fully [Meiklejohn] ? gracefully, elegantly 
[Clark and AVright] ? or ingeniously [Dyce, Hudson] ? — From Lat. cofpii- 
tus, known, famous; though confused (more in Fr. than in Eng.) with 
Lat. comptu.s, neat, adorned. Lat. con, co-, cum, together; r/noscere, to 
know, cognate with Eng. knoio ; A. S. cndioan, Icel. kna, to know; \/gan, 
to know ; whence can. Or Lat. co-, con-, or cum ; emere, to take ; comere, 
to arrange, adorn ; Old Fr. coint, quaint, neat, fine, spruce. In Fr. it took 
the sense of ' trim ' ; in Eng. it meant famous, curious, strange. Skectt. 
— See "quaint lies," III, iv,'"69. — 7. undertook. Abbott, 343, 3M, gives 
many illustrations of the tendency to drop the inflection in -en in Eliza- 
bethan authors, or to form the past participle irregularly. — The languacfe 
was peculiarly plastic in that age? — III, ii, 178. — 10. An. I, ii, 77; II, 
ii, 51; iv, 10. — break up = break open? more of Launcelot's nonsense? 
or does up = op, ope, open? — A term in carving fSteevens] ? — "Break up 
the seals and read " ; Winter's Tale, III, ii. 130; Love's Labor's Jjost, IV, i, 
56. — Up and ope are allied etymologically ? — 13. writ. Shakespeare uses 



78 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [aCT II. 

Lcmncelot. Marry, sir, to bid my old master the Jew to 
sup to-night with my new master the Christian. 

Lorenzo. Hold here, take this. — Tell gentle Jessica 
I will not fail her : — speak it privately. 

Go. — Gentlemen, \_Exit Launcelot. 

Will you prepare you for this masque to-night ? 21 

I am provided of a torch-bearer. 

Salarino. Ay, marry, I'll be gone about it straight. 

Salanio. And so will I. 

Lorenzo. Meet me and Gratiano 25 

At Gratiauo's lodging some hour hence. 

Salarino. 'Tis good we do so. 

\_Exeunt Salarino and Salanio. 

Gratiano. Was not that letter from fair Jessica? 

Lorenzo. I must needs tell thee all. She hath directed 
How I shall take her from her father's house ; 30 

What gold and jewels she is f urnish'd with ; 
What page's suit she hath in readiness. 
If e'er the Jew her father come to heaven, 
It will be for his gentle daughter's sake : 
And never dare misfortune cross her foot, 35 

Unless she do it under this excuse. 
That she is issue to a faithless Jew. 
Come, go with me ; peruse this as thou goest. 
Fair Jessica shall be my torch-bearer. [^Exeunt. 

Scene V. The Same, Before Shylock's House. 

Enter Shylock and Launcelot. 

Sliylock. Well, thou shalt see ; thy eyes shall be thy judge, 
The difference of old Shylock and Bassanio : — 

preterit lorit and lorote, and pp. ivi'it, loritten, lorote. — 18. take this. 
What ? money ? a note ? message ? — 23. provided of. Of= with ? — " You 
are well provided of hoth," Henry V, III, vii, 9; Merchant of Venice, V, 
i, 270, 271; Macheth, I, ii, 13, " of kernes and gallowglasses is supplied"; 
Bacon's Advancement of Learning , II, xxii, 15. — Abbott, 171. — 20. needs. 
See note on lohiles, I, ii, 115. — Abbott, 25, 137. — directed . . . -what 
gold, etc. An instance of zeugma? — 35. dare inisf ortviiie = will mis- 
fortune dare ? may misfortune dare ? let . . . dare ? does . . . dare ? shall . . . 
dare ? — Abbott, 364, 365. — Personification ? — 37. faithless = disbelieving 
(in the Christian faith)? 3fattheiu, xyii, 17 \ Mark, ix, 10. —Use of this 
scene? Was the masquerade devised to aid Jessica's escape? to he a sur- 
prise party to anybody ? 
Scene V. 2. difference of. "Oh the difference of man and man!" 



SCENE v.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 79 

What, Jessica ! — thou shalt not gormandize, 

As thou hast done with me, — what, Jessica ! — 

And sleep and snore, and rend apparel out. — 5 

Wliy, Jessica, I say ! 

Launcelot. Why, Jessica ! 

Sliylock. Who bids thee call? I do not bid thee call. 

Launcelot. Your worship was wont to tell me I could do 
nothing without bidding. 

Enter Jessica. 

Jessica. Call you? what is your will? lo 

Shylock. I am bid forth to supper, Jessica : 
There are my keys. — But wherefore should I go? 
I am not bid for love ; they flatter me : 
But yet I '11 go in hate, to feed upon 

The prodigal Christian. — Jessica, my girl, 15 

Look to niy house. — 1 am right loath to go : 
There is some ill a-brewing towards my rest, 
For I did dream of money-bags to-night. 

Launcelot. I beseech you, sir, go : my young master doth 
expect your reproach. 20 

Shylock. So do I his. 

Lcmncelot. And they have conspired together ; — I will not 
say you shall see a masque ; but if you do, then it was not 
for nothing that my nose fell a-bleeding on Black-Monday 
last at six o'clock V the morning, falling out that year on 
Ash- Wednesday was four year in the afternoon. 20 

Lear, IV, ii, 26.-3. what. A common impatient exclamation in calling. 
"What, Lucius, ho!" Julias Caesar, II, i, 1; Abbott, 7oa. — 'Why' and 
' when ' were similarly used. — gormandize. Had he? II, ii, 1)5. — 11. bid 
forth = invited out. Line 36. I, i, 113. Shakespeare uses bidden but once. 
For the past tense he repeatedly uses bade and bid. — 14, 15. I 'II go iu 
hate, to feed, etc. Is this consistent with what he says in I, iii, 31? — 
Why was he invited ? — 17. a-brewiug. See note on saying, II, ii, 170.^ — 
towards = against ? — 18. to-night = last night. " I dreamt to-night that 
I did feast with Cfesar," Julius Cassar, III, iii, 1; 2 Henry VI, III, ii, 31. 
"Usually, in Shakespeare, 'to-night' has its modern meaning." Rolfe. 
To is a corruption of the demonstrative [Morris]? — "Some say that to 
dream of money and all kinds of coin, is ill." Artemidorus, the Judgment 
or Exposition of Dreams (1606). — 21. so do I his. Shylock accepts Launce- 
lot's blundering word as if Launcelot meant it ? — Does he foresee Antonio's 
bankruptcy, and Bassanio's invectives? Did he originate the tales of 
Antonio's losses? See Hudson. — 24. nose fell a-hleeding. He will not 
be outdone by Shylock in the matter of bad omens ! Was the ' nose-bleed ' 
regarded as a bad siszn? — Black Monday, Easter Monday. April 14, 
1360, when Edward III lay with his army before Paris, " which day was 
fiill dark of mist and hail, and so bitter cold that many men died on their 



80 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act ii. 

Shylock. What ! are there masques ? — Hear you me, Jessica : 
Lock up my doors ; and when you hear the drum 
And the vile squealing of the wry-neck'd fife, 
Clamber you not up to the casements then, 30 

Nor thrust your head into the public street 
To gaze on Christian fools with varnish'd faces ; 
But stop my house's ears, I mean my casements : 
Let not the sound of shallow foppery enter 
jMy sober house. — By Jacob's staff, I swear, 35 

I have no mind of feasting forth to-night ; 
But I will go. — Go you before me, sirrah; 
Say I will come. 

Launcelot. I will go before, sir. — Mistress, look out at 
window, for all this : 40 

There will come a Christian by, 
Will be worth a Jewess' eye. \_Exit. 

/Shylock. What says that fool of Hagar's offspring, ha ? 

horses' backs." Stoiv. — 29. wry-neck'd fife = fife, with bent mouth- 
piece? musician, with neck bent or turned? both? — "The old English 
fife, like one used in classical times, has a bent mouth-piece . . . c-dlled fl^lte 
a bee, as the mouth-piece resembled the beak of a bird." " A^fife is a lory- 
7ieckt musician, for he always looks away from his instrument." Barnaby 
"Rich's Aphorisms (1616). Most editors incline to the latter explanation. 
For squealing, the first quarto has ' squeaking.' As good ? Horace, Odes, III, 
vii. — A. S. wrigian, to impel, move towards; Mid. Eng. torien, to twist, 
bend ; Sans, vrij, to bend; Gothic loraikivs, crooked. — Squeal is a frequen- 
tative of squeak, and means to keep on squeaking ! Note that the easily- 
prolonged liquid sound of the I, in squeal, as contrasted with the short, 
broken-off sound of the k, in squeak, fitly and neatly expresses continuous 
in contrast with momentary shrillness !— 32. variiisli'd = painted ? wear- 
ing varnished masks? disguised with duplicity? — 'But only painted, like 
his varnished friends.' Timon of Athens, IV, ii, 36. " For varnisht 
iaces . . . Are but to tempt fooles." The Neioe Metamoriihosis, c. 1600. — 
o5. Jacob's staff. Genesis, xxxii, 10; Hehrevjs, xi, 21. "And in his hand 
a Jacob's staff, to stay His weary limbs upon." Spenser's i^aer/e Queen, 
I, vi, 35. St. James (or Jacob), as the patron of pilgrims, has a pilgrim's 
staff and hat. —Relevancy of this oath ? — 36. mind of = inclination for? 
intention of? — See mind of in II, viii, 42. — fortli = out (of my own 
house)? — ^4&6o«, 174, 41; t, i, 143. Line 11, above. — 37. sirrah. Icel. 
sira, sirrah, a term of contempt. Though the word is a mere extension of 
sir or sire, the form is Icelandic. Lat. senior, older ; Old Fr. senre ; Fr. 
sire; Span, and Ital. ser, are merely borrowed from French; so also Icel. 
sira. Skeat. See note on signiors, I, i, 10. — 42. Jewess'. This is Pope's 
suggestion for the Jcioes of tiie earliest editions. ' JcM^ess ' is found in Acts, 
xvi, i, in Wiclif's, King James's, and other early versions. Would it be just 
like Launcelot to call Jessica a 'Jewie'? 'Worth a Jew's eye,' is said 
to have been a proverbial expression, referring to the price paid by the 
Jews to our gentle ancestors to save themselves from mutilation! For a 
sample, see in Scott's Ivanhoe, chap, xxii, the treatment to which Isaac of 
York was subjected by Front-de-Boeuf.— 43. Hagar's. Hagar was thQ 



SCENE VI.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 81 

Jessica His words were ^Farewell, mistress ; ' nothin^r else 
bliylock. Ihe patch is kind enough, but a huoe feeder : 45 

hnail-slow in profit, aud he sleeps by day 

More than the wild-cat : drones hive not with me • 

Therefore I part with him, and part with him 

To one that I would have him help to waste 

His borrow'd purse. —Well, Jessica, go in .- 50 

Perhaps I will return immediately. 

Do as I bid you ; shut doors after you : 

Fast bind, fast find ; 

A proverb never stale in thrifty mind. {Exit 

Jessica. Farewell ; and if my fortune be not crost 55 

i have a father, you a daughter, lost. ' [Exit. 

Scene VI. The Same. 
Enter Gratiano and Salarino, masqued. 

Gratiayio. This is the pent-house under which Lorenzo 
-Desu-ed us to make a stand. 

^^^^-y'^o. His hour is almost past. 

(jrratiano. And it is marvel he out-dwells his hour 
For lovers ever run before the clock. ' 



4^ nSolf VniV ' f • -'Appropriateness of this allusion ?- ha. Hey^ 

tmM 4TcS T^rT^\}T' ^' "^T^- Usually a term of co^il 
tbinpr. jiacoet/i, V, 111, 15 Midsummer NinhVs Dream III ii q —^nt 
from U^l.pazzo, a fool, madman, which is used in a much stronger sen sp 

descendant? -46. siiail-slow. Ahhott, 430.-47. wilXS Wh- t of 
Shakespeare's knowledge of the liabits of animals '^ - 51 will sL^I 
Sans'teTulinii }^l\^T^^ to ? Perlu^ps I vnll = '4y p^u^'os^ n^y 
-Tf ?nt.iht T^- f'^ T^ y^ purpose is to return immediately"; or 
^/.* possible^ I lutend to return immediately" f Abbott 31<ll ^ Abbott 
thinks Shakespeare never uses zoiU for shall.l- From line 51 Booth infers 
-fs S? b n.f rVfi ^'' confidence " in Jessica. Correct inier^'c^ ? 

FiSo^rf^s^ S.-^^^?s^sS^^r^^i^Stir^s 
s^nr^rrpTSofsh^yi^^^^^^^^^ 

nr.1^.^?^^ ^^' ^- pent-house = shed projecting from a building. Lat. 
S^P mT't^^^P^^'^^V?^' 'i' *^i pendere, to hang; Fr. appejitis,! pent- 
SnlT.'o ^ "/•/'''^/••- ^en^/iOi^se is a corruption of pentice or pentis, 
thP rp.t ?S''''^/*q'''S'"^^ '^"?® of one part of the word at the expense of 
merest, bkeat. So Fr. ecrevisse became cray-fish; bufetier, beef-eater; 



82 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [ACT II. 

Salarino. O, ten times faster Venus' pigeons fly 5 

To seal love's bonds uew-macle, than they are wont 
To keep obliged faith unforfeited ! 

Gratiano. That ever holds : who riseth from a feast 
With that keen appetite that he sits down ? 
Where is the horse that doth uutread again 10 

His tedious measures with the unbated fire 
That he did pace them first? All things that are 
Are Avith more spirit chased than enjoy'd. 
How like a younger, or a prodigal, 

The scarfed bark i)uts from her native bay, 15 

Hugg'd and embraced by the strumpet wind ! 
How like a prodigal doth she return, 
With over-weather'd ribs and ragged sails. 
Lean, rent, and beggar'd by the strumpet wind ! 

Salarino. Here comes Lorenzo : — more of this hereafter. 20 

Enter Lorenzo. 

Lorenzo. Sweet friends, your patience for my long abode ; 
Not I, but my affairs, have made you wait : 
When you shall please to pla}^ the thieves for wives, 

Bellerojohon, Bnllj-rn&Sin; Chartreuse, Charter-house; Bocage-waUc,hird- 
cagewalk; Chateau vert, ^hotoyer; quelques choses, kickshaws; etiquette 
(a label), the ticket; tSaint Diacre, Sandy Acre (a parish in Derbyshire); 
contre-danse, conntry-dance ; girasol artichoke, Jerusalem artichoke (r/ira- 
sol meaning ' turning toward the sun ' ) , etc. — Macbeth, I, iii, 20. — 5. Veil vis' 
pigeons. "I met her deity Cutting the clouds towards Paphos, and her 
son Dove-draiun with her"; Tempest, IV, i, 94. Sparrows, doves, swans, 
and swallows were sacred to her. Doves especially draw her chariot. See 
the Classical Dictionaries. — Midsutmner Night's Dream, I, i, 171. — Who 
seals the bonds ? Venus, or the pigeons ? — 7. obliged = plighted ? — Lat. oh, 
to; ligare, to bind; ohliqare, to bind together; Fr. ohliqer, to oblige, tie, 
bind. Skeat. — 9. sits down. Ellipsis? I, i, 125; IV, i, "380; Abhc>U,202, 
391. — 10. untread. "The allusion seems to be to a horse trained," etc. 
[Clark and Wright] ? — 11. younger. Rowe changed this to younker, and 
many editors follow him. See Luke, xv, 12, 13, and the whole parable. — 
The Gr. veavia';, ncanias, young man, is used sometimes to express dispar- 
agement; as if young men. were wilful, headstrong, or rash. — A. S. geong, 
giung, iung ; Teutonic type, yunga ; base yuwan, young ; Lat. juvenis, 
young. Yonker is from Dutch jonker, compounded of jong, young, and 
Iieer, a lord, sir, gentleman, Skeat. — 16. wind, etc. So ' the bawdy wind 
that kisses all it meets ' ; Othello, IV, ii, 77. See the exquisite comparison 
of Delilah to a ship in Milton's Samson. — 17. a prodigal. The folios 
have 'a prodigal'; the quartos, ' ^Ae prodigal.' Preference? — she. The 
bark ought to be masculine [Steevens] ? — 18. over-Tveatliered = injured 
by storms [Clark and Wright] ? weather-beaten to excess [Meiklejohn] ? — ■ 
19. Is the repetition of ' strumpet wind ' a beauty or a blemish? — 21. abode. 
A. S. bidan, to bide; abidan, to wait; Mid. Eng. abood, delay, abiding.— 



SCENE VI.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 83 

I'll watch as long for you then. — Approach ; 

Here dwells my father Jew. — Ho ! who's within? 25 

Enter Jessica, above .^ in boy's clothes. 

Jessica. Who are you? Tell me, for more certahity, 
Albeit I'll swear that I do know your tongue. 

Lorenzo. Lorenzo, and thy love. 

Jessica. Lorenzo, certain ; and my love indeed, 
For who love I so much? And now who knows 30 

But you, Lorenzo, whether I am yours? 

Lorenzo. Heaven and thy thouglits are witness that thou 
art. 

Jessica. Here, catch this casket ; it is worth the pains. 
I am glad 't is night, you do not look on me. 
For I am much asham'd of my exchange : 35 

But love is blind and lovers cannot see 
The prett}^ follies thskt themselves commit ; 
For if they could, Cupid himself would blush 
To see me thus transformed to a boy. 

Jjorenzo. Descend, for you must be my torch-bearer. 40 

Jessica. What, must I hold a candle to my shames? 
They in themselves, good sooth, are too too light. 
Why, 't is an office of discovery, love ; 
And I should be obscur'd. 

Lorenzo. So are you, sweet, 

Even in the lovely garnish of a boy. 45 

But come at once ; 

For the close night doth play the runawa}', 
And we are stay'd for at Bassanio's feast. 

Jessica. I will make fast the doors, and gild myself 
With some more ducats, and be with j'ou straight. 50 

\_Exit above. 

23. you shall please. See on I, iii, 27. — 30. who. Often used for lohom 
by Shakesj)eare. See our note on "who I myself struck down," Macbeth, 
III, i, 122, and Macbeth, IV, iii, 171; Abbott, 274.-32. Heaven. A com- 
pulsory euphemism [Allen] ? I, ii, 96. — 35. exchange = change of dress ? 
changed dress ? — 38. For, etc. The logic here ? — 42. too too. Sometimes 
a compound word; but is it so here, and in Hamlet's, " O that this too too 
solid flesh would melt," etc., I, ii, 129? — 43. discovery = showing {i.e., 
showing, with the torch-light, the way). — Dis- was sometimes used in the 
sense of un-. Abbott, 439. — 44. obscur'd. " There is a play on the word 
obscured. Jessica means that she ought to be hidden ; Lorenzo, that her 
lustre is dimmed"? — 47. close = secret [Clark and Wright] ? stealthy? 
Macbeth, III, v, 7, ' the close contriver of all harms '; Richard III, I, i, 158. 



84 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [aCT II. 

Gratiano. Now, by my hood, a Gentile and no Jew. 

Lorenzo. Beshrew me but I love her heartily ! 
For she is wise, if I can judge of her ; 
And fair she is, if that mine eyes be true ; 
And true she is, as she hath prov'd herself ; 55 

And therefore, like herself, wise, fair, and true, 
Shall she be placed in my constant soul. — 

Enter Jessica, heloiv. 

What, art thou come? On, gentlemen ; away ! 
Our masquing mates by this time for us stay. 

[^Exit with Jessica and Salarino. 

Enter Antonio. 

Antonio. Who 's there ? 60 

Gratiano. Signior Antonio ! 

Antonio. Fie, fie, Gratiano ! where are all the rest? 
'T is nine o'clock ; our friends all stay for you. 
No masque to-night : the wind is come about ; 
Bassanio presently will go aboard. 65 

I have sent twenty out to seek for you. 

Gratiano. I am glad on 't : I desire no more delight 
Than to be under sail and gone to-night. [Exeunt. 

— runaway. Romeo and Jvliet, III, ii, 6. — 51. hood = mask [Sclimidt] ? 
hood of the dress worn as a disguise [Malone and Steevens] ? self, man- 
hood, estate [White]? "In swearing by his hood, he implies a likening 
of himself to a hooded monk swearing by his monastic character." Hud- 
son. "The speaker's oath is of monkish origin." CcqjelL — Gentile. 
The second quarto and first folio have gentle. " ' Gentile,' " says Johnson, 
" signifies both ' heathen ' and ' well-born.' " Verbal play here? IV, i, 34. 

— 52. beslirew. Fr. \/skar, to cut; Teutonic base skru, to cut, tear 
(preserved in shred) ; Sans, kshur, to scratch; A. S. scrediva, the biter, a 
shrew-mouse ; Mid. Eng. shreioe, wicked, bad (api^lied to both sexes) ; Mod. 
Eng. screw, a vicious horse. The sense of ' biter ' or ' scratcher ' will well 
apply to a cross child or a scolding woman! Skeat. See III, ii, 2o8; also 
our edition of Hamlet, I, iv, 1. — The prefix he- (Gothic hi, A. S., Ger., Swed. 
he), same in origin as hi/, and denoting nearness, was primarily combined 
with verbs to particularize the action. It may render intransitive verbs 
transitive, as he/all, helie ; or change the direction, as hehold, heset, hetake ; 
or give emphasis, as hedazzle, herhyme, hesmear. See note on hechanc'd, 
I, i, 38. — Beshreio is used in jocose or petty or good-natvired imprecation. 

— See our Masterpieces, pp. 26, 28, 297. — Midsummer NiqlWs Dream, II, 
ii, 54.— but I =if I do not [Hudson]? Ahhott, 126. — 54. if that = if so 
be that? So, too, 'while that,' 'though that,' 'since that,' 'when that,' 
etc., are explained as elliptical. Ahhott, 287,288. — 55. true. But — ? — 
I am afraid the doctrine of ' die tragische Schuld ' in Shakespeare needs 
patching. Furness. — 67. on't, Shakespeare frequently uses on for of. 



SCENE VII.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE, 



Scene VII. Belmont. A Room in Portia^ s House. 

Flourish of cornets. Enter Portia, with the Prince of 
Morocco, and their trains. 

Portia. Go, draw aside the curtains, and discover 
The several caskets to this noble prince. — 
Now make your choice. 

Morocco. This first, of gold, who this inscription bears, 

Who chooseth me shall gain what many men desire. 5 

The second, silver, which this promise carries. 

Who chooseth me shall get as inuch as he deserves. 
This third, dull lead, with warniug all as blunt. 

Who chooseth me must give and hazard all he hath. 

How shall I know if I do choose the right ? 10 

o 

Portia. The one of them contains my picture, prince : 
If you choose that, then I am yours withal. 

Morocco. Some god direct my judgment ! Let me see ; 
I will survey the inscriptions back again. 
What says this leaden casket? 15 

Who chooseth me must give and, hazard all he hath. 
Must give — for what ? For lead ? Hazard for lead ? 
This casket threatens. Men that hazard all 
Do it in hoj)e of fair advantages : 

A golden mind stoops not to shows of dross ; 20 

I '11 then nor give nor hazard aught for lead. 
What says the silver with her virgin hue ? 
Who chooseth me shcdl get as much as he deserves. 
As much as he deserves? Pause there, Morocco, 
And weigh thy value with an even hand : 25 

" Be not jealous on me," Julius Csesar, I, ii, 67. So " lest they should tell 
on us," 1 Samuel, xxvii, 11. The expression on't for of it survives in collo- 
quial speech in New England and in the North of England. Abbott, 180, 181 , 
182. — Questions raised by this scene ? Its value in the play ? Can you quite 
Justify Jessica? In Jessica's career, where is that relentless fate, * die trag- 
ische Schuld,' that pursues the guilty and ensures their downfall [Furness]"? 
Scene VII. 1. discover. "Still used in this sense? See on II, vi, 43. — 
4. gold, who. This use of ' who ' to designate soiuething inanimate is 
very frequent in Shakespeare, and may alniost always he explained as 
personification ; but it sometimes appears to be interchangeable with ivhich 
and thcft. Abbott, 2()4, 205. So "Our Father, which art," etc., Mattheui, 
vi, <». — 5. many. Omitted in the folios? Well ? The metre in lines 5, 7, 
9 ? — J bbott, 501. — 12. withal = with it ? with everything ? also ? wholly ? 
Compounded of viith and old dative alle, and meaning with, with it, wholly. 
Skeat. —Ill, i, 24, 41 ; IV, i, 403; Macbeth, I, iii, 57.-22. her. Why fem'i- 



86 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [aCT il. 

If thou be'st rated by thy estimation, 

THou dost deserve enough ; and yet enough 

May not extend so far as to the kidy : 

And yet to be af eard of iny deserving 

Were but a weak disabling of myself. 30 

As much as I deserve? Why, that's the lady : 

I do in birth deserve her, and in fortunes, 

In graces and in qualities of breeding ; 

But more than these in love I do deserve. 

What if I stray'd no further, but chose here? — 35 

Let 's see once more this saying grav'd in gold ; 

Who chooseth me shall gain luhat mamy men desire. 

Why, that 's the lady : all the world desires her : 

From the four corners of the earth they come, 

To kiss this shrine, this mortal breathing saint. 40 

The Il3'rcanian deserts and the vasty wilds 

Of wide Arabia are as throughfares now 

For princes to come view fair Portia. 



nine ? — 26. be'st. " This heest must not be confounded with the subjunc- 
tive be. It is the A. S. hist, second person, sing. pres. indicative of bean, 
to be." Rolfe. I, iii, 19; Paradise Lost, i, 84. — estimation = reputation 
[Meiklejohn] ? iTroilus and Cressida, II, 11, 91. " He cannot plead his 
estimation (reputation) with you"; Pleasure for Measure, IV, 11, 23. — 
29. afeard. Interchangeable with a/r«zcZ in Shakespeare. Macbeth,!, \\\, 
39. — 30. disabling = disparaging or depreciating [Hudson] ? — 34. more 
than = besides ? In a higher degree than in? I, 1, 123. — 40. mortal 
breathing = who, though canonized, still breathes [Meiklejohn]? — To 
kiss the shrine which incloses the hallowed bones of a saint, men make 
long j)ilgrimages ; but here Is a veritable saint herself In mortal form, 
breathing, and^ under due conditions, kissable ! — " Some recent editors have 
hyphened the words, i^ei-haps rightly." Clark and \Vri(/ht. — shrine = im- 
age [Walker]? — 41. Hyrcanian. Hyrcanla was a vast district south and 
south-east of the Caspian. Shakespeare mentions the Hyrcanian tigers in 3 
Henry VI, I, Iv, 155; Macbeth, III, Iv, 101, q.v. In our edition; and Hamlet, 
ir, 11, 436. " Tygres are bred In Hyrcanla and India," Pliny, National His- 
tory, viil, 18. — vasty (reading of first quarto). Lat. vastvs, vast; empty, 
waste (which word Is simply borrowed from vastus) , desolate, desert ; Fr; 
vaste, waste. — 1 Henry IV, III, 1, 53, " I can call spirits from the vasty 
deep " ; Winter's Tale, I, i, 28, " shook hands as over a vast, and embraced." 
— 42. throughfares. A. S. thurh, through; thyrel, a hole; Fr. \/tar, to 
bore; thorouf/h Is a later form of thronyh.^ Fare is from A. S.faraji, Tcel. 
fara, to go, to travel ; akin to Gr. nepdio, perao, I jmss through ; Trdpo?, poms, 
a way through; and to ferry. Farewell = may you travel or speed well. 
Skeat. — 43. come view. When the infinitive inflection was getting 
dropped, to was often substituted for it, and in the transition period there 
was much irregularity as to the use or omission of this to. Abbott, .349. — 
Usage finally settled on the omission of to, as a rule, after bid, feel, dare, 
do, have, hear, let, make, (help, in America), need, see, may, can, will, 
shall, and must ; but retained the to after other verbs. — Shakespeare omits 



SCENE VII.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 87 

The watery kingdom, whose ambitious head 

Spets in the face of heaven, is no bar 45 

To stop the foreign spirits, but they come, 

As o'er a brook, to see fair Portia. 

One of these three contains her heavenly picture. 

Is 't like that lead contains her ? 'T were damnation ' 

To think so base a thought : it were too gross 50 

To rib her cerecloth in the obscure grave. 

Or shall I think in silver she 's immur'd, 

Being ten times undervalued to tried gold ? 

O sinful thought ! Never so rich a gem 

Was set in worse than gold. They have in England 55 

A coin that bears the figure of an angel 

Stamped in gold ; but that 's insculp'd upon : 

But here an angel in a golden bed 

Lies all within. — Deliver me the key : 

Here do I choose, and thrive I as I may ! go 

Portia. There, take it, prince ; and if m}^ form lie there, 
Then I am yours. [^He unlocks the golden casket. 

Morocco. O hell ! what have we here? 

A carrion death, within whose empty eye 
There is a written scroll ! I '11 read the writing. 

' to ' after ' perceive, ' in V, i, 77. — 49. like. Is this use of ' like ' allowable 
now? — 51. gross. Late Lat. grossus, thick; Old Fr. gros, great, big, 
thick. How happens it that coarseness or grossness in a moral aspect is 
associated with what is large, and delicacy and refinement with what is 
small ? — 52. cerecloth. Gr. ktjpo?, Jceros ; Lat. cera, wax. A. S. clddh, 
a cloth. Linen cloth was dipped in melted wax and used as a shroud. — 
obscure. How accented? Macbeth, 11, \\\,'^0; i/owiei, IV, v, 193; Rich- 
ard II., Ill, iii, 154. — 53. undervalued to. I, i, 165, 10(3. Gold was to 
silver in 1568 as 11 to 1 ; in 1600 (when this play was printed ?) as 10 to 1 ; 
in the eighteenth century at one time, 14 to 1 ; at this time, nearly 15 to 1 ? 

— 56. angel. Worth about 10 shillings. Called ' angel ' from having a 
figure of Michael piercing the dragon. " If a Dutchman be asked l^pw he 
would in his language call an Angel-like man, he would answer ein Eng- 
lish-man, Engel being in their tongue an Angel, and English, which they 
write Engelsche, Angel-like. And such reason and consideration may have 
moved our former kings, upon their best coin of pure and fine gold, to set 
the image of an angel." Restitution of Decayed Intelligence, Verstegan 
(died in 1635). The pun ascribed by the Venerable Bede to Gregory the 
Great, " Non angli sed angeli," not Angles (English), but angels (if they 
were but good Christians) , is said to have suggested the device. The coin 
is mentioned in Macheth, IV, iii, 153. — 57. that 's = that angel is? that 
gold is? — insculp'd upon. In Horace we have inscvlpere saxo, to 
insculp (or carve) upon a rock. — 58. angel in a golden bed. Antithesis ? 

— 59. key. Rhyme? yes [Walker]? not quite certain [Furness] ? — 63. 
carrion death = skull from which the flesh has disappeared ? Lat. caro, 
flesh; Low Lat. caronia; Old Fr. caroigne, charoigne, a carcass; Fr. 



88 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act it. 

All that glisters is not gold; G5 

Often have you heard that told : 
Many a man his life hath sold, 
But my outside to behold : 
Gilded tombs do worms iifold. 

Had you been as ivise as bold, 70 

Young in limbs, in judgment old. 
Your ansioer had not been inscroWd : 
Fare you well; your suit is cold. 
Cold, indeed ; and labour lost : 

Then, farewell, heat, and welcome, frost ! 75 

Portia, adien ! I have too griev'd a heart 
To take a tedious leave : thus losers part. 

\_Exit tvith his train . 
Portia. A gentle riddance. — Draw the curtains ; go. 
Let all of his complexion choose me so. 

\_Exeunt. Flourish of cornets. 

Scene VIII. Venice. A Street. 
Enter Salakino and Salanio. 

Salarino. Why, man, I saw Bassanio under sail : 
With him is Gratiano gone along ; 
And in their ship I am sure Lorenzo is not. 

charof/ne ; Mid. 'Eug. car oc/ne ; Eng. carrioji. — 05. glisters. Shakespeare 
and Milton use ' glisters,' or ' glistering,' ' glistered,' etc. ; but not ' glisten,' 
— 67, 08. maiiy,"etc. = many have sold their lives for the mere pleasure of 
looking at gold ? for its external value rather than the good it can do ? Was 
to see it equivalent to to own it? Is it beauty rather than gold ; that is, is 
it the skull that speaks? — 09. tombs. The early editions read "Guilded 
timber doe wormes infold." Johnson changed timber doe to tovibs do, and 
all subsequent editors (except Hallivvell, 1850) have followed him. The 
old word tomhes might easily be misprinted timber. Timber doe makes 
.s^?Kse, but how about" the grammar and the rhythm? — Malone cites from 
Shakespeare's 101st sonnet, ' out-live a f/ilded tomb.' —77. part = separate ? 
depart? " When I parted hence," Coriolanus, V, vi, 73; Macbeth, V, viii, 
52. " Till death us do part," in the marriage service, is said to have been 
originally "till death us depart." So de- is omitted in Antony and Cleo- 
patra, III, xi, 54, "What I have left behind Stroy'd in dishonor." — 79. 
complexion. To be taken literally? or does it mean character, as per- 
haps in III, i, 20? — Lat. com for cum, with; plcctere, to plait; complecti, 
to surround, twine around, encompass; complcxio, a comprehending, com- 
pass, circuit, habit of tlie body, complexion ; Old and Mod. Fr. complexion, 
complexion, appearance. — Ruling passion of the Prince of Morocco ? Pi-og- 
ress in the plot in this scene ? Its moral ? Should the act end here ? By 
concluding the second act here, time is given for Bassanio's passage to 
Belmont [Johnson] ? 



') 



SCENE VIII.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 89 

Salanio.' The villain Jew with outcries rais'd the duke, 
Who went with him to search Bassanio's ship. 

Salarino. He came too late, the ship was under sail : 
But there the duke was given to understand 
That in a gondola were seen together 
Lorenzo and his amorous Jessica : 

Besides, Antonio certified the duke 10 

They were not with Bassanio in his ship. 

Salanio. I never heard a passion so confus'd, 
So strange, outrageous, and so variable. 
As the dog Jew did utter in the streets : 

' My daughter ! O my ducats ! O my daughter ! 15 

Fled with a Christiau ! O my Christian ducats ! 
Justice ! the law ! my ducats, and my daughter ! 
A sealed bag, two sealed bags of ducats, 
Of double ducats, stolen from me by my daughter ! 
And jewels, two stones, two rich and precious stones, 20 
Stolen by my daughter ! Justice ! find the girl ; 
She hath the stones upon her, and the ducats.' 

Salarino. Why, all the boys in Venice follow him. 
Crying, his stones, his daughter, and his ducats. 

Salanio. Let good Antonio look he keep his day, 25 

Or he shall pay for this. 

Salarino. Marry, well remember'd. 

I reason'd with a Frenchman yesterday, 
AViio told me, in the narrow seas that part 
The French and English, there miscarried 
A vessel of our country richly fraught. 30 

I thought upon Antonio when he told me. 
And wish'd in silence that it were not his. 



Scene VIII. 4. villain. Lat. villa, a farm ; Low Lat. villanus, a farm 
servant; Old Fr. vilein, base, servile. — rais'd. "Get weapons, ho ! And 
raise some special otilicers of night," Othello, I, ii, 171, 172. — 6. came. The 
folio has comes, and perhaps it should be retained as a vivid historical 
present. Your judgment ? — 10. certified. Lat. certi-, for certvs, certain ; 
fac-ere, to make, where /ac- turns to./?/;- in derivatives. Skeat. — The 
usual Latin phrase cerilorem facere =to inform. — 12. Walker (185!)) jDoints 
out the similarity of Shylock's passion to that of ' the old bad Chremes in 
Sidney's Arcadia.'' — passion = passionate outcry. Rhetorical figure ? "Your 
passion draws ears hither," Troilvn and Cressida, V, ii, 180^ — 25. keep 
his day. See break his day, I, iii. 153. — 27. reason'd. I, ii, 19. "There 
is no end of women's reasoning" (i.e., talk, conversation). Beainnont 
<md Fletcher. — 28. narrow seas= English Channel? See III, i, .3.-30. 
fraught = laden. Swed. /VaA;to, to freight; Mid. Eng./raH(//i«, freighted; 



90 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act II. 

Salanio. You were best to tell Antonio what you hear ; 
Yet do not suddenly, for it may grieve him. 

Salarino. A kinder gentleman treads not the earth. 35 

I saw Bassanio and Antonio part : 
Bassanio told him he would make some speed 
Of his return : he answer'd, ' Do not so ; 
Slubber not business for my sake, Bassanio, 
But stay the very ripiug of the time ; 10 

And for the Jew's bond which he hath of me, 
Let it not enter in your mind of love. 
Be merry, and employ your chiefest thoughts 
To courtship, and such fair ostents of love 
As shall conveniently become you there.' 45 

And even there, his eye being big with tears. 
Turning his face, he put his hand behind him, 
And with affection wondrous sensible 
He wrung Bassanio's hand ; and so they parted. 

Salanio. I think he only loves the world for him. 50 

I pray thee, let us go and find him out. 
And quicken his embraced heaviness 

Jrcmr/ht, to lade a ship; freight, a later form oi fraught. — 33. You were 
best. An old idiom for " it were best for you," you being the dative 
object, and luere impersonal. " Very early, however,, the personal con- 
struction is found side by side with the impersonal." — Allen, cited by 
Furness, would omit to before tell, regarding it as absorbed in the t of 
hcst.— Abbott, 230, 352. See note on V, i, 175, where we have the personal 
construction? See note on 1, iii, 27.-39. slubber. Swed. shtbba, to 
mix up liquids in a slovenly way; slubbra, to be disorderly, slobber with 
the lips; Danish slubbrc, to slabber; Eng. slubber, to do carelessly, sully. 
Othello, I, iii, 22(i, " content to slubber the gloss of your new fortunes." — " To 
bungle up, or slubber over, things in haste." Cotgrave's Dictionary (1660). 
— 40. riping. "And so, from hour to hour, we ripe and ripe," As You 
Like I^, II, vii,26.— 42. in=into? Abbott, 159; V, i, 56. — mind of Iove = 
loving mind ? mind bent on love ? We have, in Shakespeare, ' men of sin ' 
for sinful men, 'mind of honor' for honorable mind, 'god of power' for 
powerful god, etc. So in Keats, "A thing of beauty is a joy forever." — 
Heath (17(55) suggested a comma after mind, interpreting thus : Let me 
entreat you l)y our mutual love. —43. employ . . . to. A solitary instance 
in Shakespeare of to after employ. Allowable? — ostents. II, ii, 179. — 
45. conveniently. "Feed me with food convenient {i.e., suital)le) for 
me"; Proverbs, xxx, 8. Usually so in the Bible, and once in Milton. 
Lat. con, together; venire, to come; conveniens, coming together, becom- 
ing, suitable. —46. there. Supposed by Dyce to be a misprint for then. 
Furness apparently concurs. — 47. turning- his face. 'The outline of a 
beautiful picture.' 3f alone. — 48. sensible = sensitive ? tender. "I would 
your cambric were sensible as your finger." II, ix, 88. Coriolanus, I, 
iii, 82, 83. — Love's Labor's Lost, IV, iii, 332, 333. — Lat. sentire, to feel; 
sensus, feeling. — 52. quicken. A. S. cuiic, alive; Mid. Eng. quik, alive; 
quickenen, to become alive, to make alive, enliven. — embraced = hugged, 



SCENE IX.] THE MERCHANT Oh , ... /^.-^ 91 

With some delight or other. 

Salarino. Do we so. [^Exeunt. 

# 

Scene IX. Belmont. A Room in Portia's House. 

Enter Nekissa tvitli a Servitor. 

Nerissa. Quick, quick, I pray thee ; draw the curtain straight: 
The Prince of Arragon hath ta'en his oath, 
And comes to his election presently. 

Flourish of Cornets. Enter the Prince of Arragon, 
Portia, and their Trains. 

Portia. Behold, there stand the caskets, noble prince : 
If you choose that wherein I am contain'd, 5 

Straight shall our nuptial rites be solemniz'd : 
But if you fail, without more speech, my lord. 
You must be gone from hence immediately. 

Arragon. I am enjoin'd by oath to observe three things : 
First, never to unfold to any one lO 

Which casket 't was I chose ; next, if I fail 
Of the right casket, never in my life 
To woo a maid in way of marriage ; 
Lastly, if I do fail in fortune of my choice, 
Immediately to leave 3'Ou and be gone. 15 

Portia. To these injunctions every one doth swear 
That comes to hazard for my worthless self. 

Arragon. And so have I address'd me. Fortune now 
To my heart's hope ! — Gold, silver, and base lead. 



indulged, cherished, clung to. — So ' rash-embrac'd despair,' III, ii, 109, 

— "Ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations," 1 Peter, i, 6. — 
53. Do we. Imperative first person? V, i, 36. — Your comments on this 
scene ? Its use ? 

Scene IX. 1. draw = open? close? See line 82, pos^. — 3. election. 
Lat. e, out; legere, to pick, to choose; eligere, to choose out; electio, choice. 

— presently. I, i, 183. — 13. a maid^ Might he woo a loidoio? marry 
loithovt wooing? or is it assumed that he will break his oath ? or did Shake- 
speare, when he wrote line 69, forget what he wrote in this tenth line ? — 
17. to hazard = to run risks [Schmidt] ? to a risk [Clark and Wright] ? 
substantive, or verb? — 18. address'd nie = prepared myself? — Lat. ac?, 
to; di- or dis-, apart; rec/ere, to rule, control; dirigere, to straighten, 
direct; directus, straight; Low Lat. dr ictus, straight; assumed Low Lat. 
drictiare, whence Fr.d7-es.se?', to erect, set up, arrange, dress; Mid. Eng. 
dressen, to make ready, deck. Sl'cnt. "Address yourself to entertain 
them sprightly." Winter's Tale, IV, iv, 53. — Fortune =: May Fortune? 



92 MbE merchant of VENICE. [aCT II. 

' Who chooseth me must give and hazard all he hath.' 20 

You shall look fairer, ere I give or hazard. 

What says the golden chest ? ha ! let me see • — 

' Who chooseth me shall gain what many men desire.' 

What many men desire ! that many may be meant 

By the fool multitude, that choose by show, 25 

Not learning more than the fond eye doth teach ; 

Which pries not to th' interior, but, like the martlet. 

Builds in the weather, on the outward wall, 

Even in the force and road of casualty. 

I will not choose what many men desire, 3«^ 

Because I will not jump with common spirits, 

And rank me with the barbarous multitudes. 

Why, then to thee, thou silver treasure-house ; 

Tell me once more what title thou dost bear : 

' Who chooseth me shall get as much as he deserves ' .* 35 

And well said too ; for who shall go about 

To cozen fortune and be honorable 

Without the stamp of merit? Let none presume 

To wear an undeserved dignity. 

O, that estates, degrees and offices 40 

Were not deriv'd corruptly, and that clear honor 

Were purchas'd by the merit of the wearer ! 

O Fortune [Eccles] ? — 25. by the fool = of the foolish ? See note on I, 
ii,4:6; I, i, 102. — Furness thinks that 6?/ was commonly used instead of 
for after the verb to mpctn. — 26. fond. So in III, iii, 9, and commonly in 
Shakespeare. Swed. fane, a fool; fanif/, foolish; Mid. Eng./onne/i, to act 
foolishly; fond, foolish. — " Fond and reasonless to some." Milton's Sam- 
son Agonfst.es, 812. — multitude. The oi ttoAAoi, hoi polloi, the rabble. — 
27. martlet, a kind of swallow, the house-martin. The name is, in fact, 
a nickname, like robin, jenny- wren; -let being diminutive. See our edition 
of Macbeth, I, vi, 4. — -28. in tlie weather = exposed to storm. In King 
John, IV, ii, 109, we read, ' pour down thy weather.' Cymbeline, III, iii, 64. 
Tent. l)ase wedra, weather, storm, wind; A. S., Dutch, Mid. Eng. iveder ; 
akin to Ger. geivitter; Lithuanian ivetra, a storm; from \/ WA, to blow 
(whence loiyid, i.e., vn-nd), and dra, Aryan -tar, denoting the agent. Thus 
ineatJipr and 'tnind, mean much the same, viz., 'that which blows,' and 
tliey are constantly associated in the phrase ' wind and weather.' SJceat. 

— 29. in the force, etc. Perhaps equivalent to iyi vi et via, exposed to 
the attack of [Allen] ? — 31. jump = agree ? jump to the same conclusion ? 

— Swed. dialect gvmpa, to spring, jump, or wag about heavily. It also 
means just or exactly, as in Hamlet, I, i, 65 ; also to risl-, hazard, as in 
Marheth, I, vii, 7. — 37. cozen, cheat, as by calling one 'cousin,' beguiling 
with flattery, etc. See our edition of Hamlet, I, ii, 64; III, iv, 77. — 40. 
estates = ranks? fortunes? In Hamlet, V, i, 210, " 'twas of some estate" 
= 'twas of some rank. Not pi-operty, but dignity, status. Furness. — 42. 
purchased = won, acquired. Lat. pro, for; Low Lat. caciare, to chase; 
Old Fr. purchacer, later pourchasser, to pursue eagerly, purchase, procure. 



SCENE IX.] THE MERCHANT OF VENI&E. 93 

How many tlien should cover that stand bare ! 

How many be commanded that command ! 

How much low peasantry would then be glean'd 45 

From the true seed of honor ; and how much honor 

Pick'd from the chaff and ruin of the times, 

To be new-varnish'd ! Well, but to my choice : 

' Who chooseth me shall get as much as he deserves.' 

I will assume desert. —Give me a key for this, 50 

And instantly unlock my fortunes here. 

[jffe opens the silver casket. 
Portia. Too long a pause for that wliicli you find there. 
Arragon. What's here? the portrait of a blinking idiot, 
Presenting me a schedule ! I will read it. 
How much unlike art thou to Portia ! 55 

How much unlike my hopes and my deservings ! 
' Who chooseth me shall have as much as he deserves.' 
Did I deserve no more than a fool's head? 
Is that my prize ? are my deserts no better ? 

Portia. To offend and judge are distinct offices, 60 

And of opposed natures. 

Arragon. AVhat is here? 

The fire seven times tried this : 

Seven times tried that judgment is, 

That did never choose ainiss. 

Some there be that shadows kiss; 65 

Such have but a shadow's bliss. 

There befools alive., I ivis, 

Silver'd o'er : and so was this. 



— 4o. cover = wear their bats as superiors, not take tliem off as inferiors? 
As You Like It, III, iii, 68, "pray be covered." See III, v, 35, o(). — 15. 
peasantry. The folios ha.Ye pleasantn/ ; the fivst quarto, j)easantry. 
Can any ^ood sense be extracted from " j)leasantry " ? — 47. ruiu= refuse ? 
— Lat. rvere, to tumble, sink in ruin, rush; ruintf, overthrow, downfall, 
a down-crashing. — Mr. S. Bailey (1862) would read thus: " How much low 
peasant's rye would then be screened from the true seed of honor! and 
how much seed picked from the chaff and sireioings of the tem.se [a knid 
of sieve] to be new garnered! " — 52. Too long, etc. Spoken aside, not 
for Arra^on's ear? — 48. new-varnisli'd. Mixture of metaphors ? — 54. 
schedule = scroll? — From v/ SKID, to cleave; Lat. se/ieda, a strip of pa- 
pyrus bark ; schedida (diminutive), a small leaf of paper. SJceat. — 60. dis- 
tinct. Said to be accented here on the first syllable, like 'obscure,' II, 
vii, 51. But? — 62. Are. "Fear, dear, , fire, hour, yow, four, and other 
monosyllables ending in r or re, preceded"by a long vowel or diphthong, are 
frequently pronoimced as dissyllables." Abbott, 480. So the second ' your ' 
in III ii,'20? — 67. I wis. Siselled Ivns in the second quarto, and so in 
A7icren Riwle, about the year 1230. " The I has often been mistaken for 



94 TBE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [aCT ii. 

Take what ivife you will to bed^ 
I tvill ever be your head : 70 

So be gone; you are sped. 
Still more fool I shall appear 
By the time I linger here : 
With one fool's head I came to woo, 
But I go away with two. — 75 

Sweet, adieu ! I'll keep my oath, 
Patiently to bear my wroth. 

[^Exeunt Arragon arid Train. 
Portia. Thus hath the candle sing'd the moth. 
O, these deliberate fools ! when they do choose, 
They have the wisdom by their wit to lose. 80 

Nerissa. The ancient saying is no heresy, — 
Hanging and wiving goes by destiny. 

Portia. Come, draw the curtain, Nerissa. 

Enter a Servant. 

Servant. Where is my lady ? 

Portia. Here ; what would my lord? 

Servant. Madam, there is alighted at your gate 85 

A young Venetian, one that comes before 
To signify th' approaching of his lord, 
From whom he bringeth sensible regreets ; 

the first personal pronoun, and the verb vyis, to know, has been thus created, 
and is given in many dictionaries! But it is a pure fiction. — A. S. fjeivis, 
certain; Mid. Eng. ?/ic«\s,- Gev. gevnss. Related to ivise and ivit." Skeat. 

— "Shakespeare no doubt regarded it as a pronoun and verb." Eolfe ; 
Abbott, 345.-69. wife. See note on line 13.-70. head. Perhaps a 
reference to " The husband is the head of the wife," Ephesians, v, 23. 
Clark and Wright.— 11. sped = despatched ? 'done for'? See note on 
'sped' in our edition of Milton's Lycidas, line 122; also our edition of 
Macbeth, I, v, 33. From V spa, to draw out; allied to Lat. sixahmi, room ; 
spes, hope; Eng. span; A. S. spedan. —Romeo and Juliet,^ III, i, 88, "I 
am sped " ; spoken by Mercutio when mortallv wounded.— laming of the 
Shreio,Y, ii, 185.-77. wroth = sorrow [Schmidt] ? suffering [Hudson]? 
torturing anger (wrath)? Spelled loroath in the folio. — A. S. ivrddh, 
wroth, as adjective ; loridhan, to writhe, so that the original sense was 
'wry,' i.e., twisted or perverted in temper. Skeat. — 78. moth. Is this 
designed to rhyme with 'wroth'?— 82. by destiny. " Your marriage 
comes by destiny." Quoted as from an old ballad in All's Well, I, m 5b. 

— 84. my lord. Spoken playfully in reply to the words " my lady ? She 
is in a happy mood, and disposed to joke? — Similarly, in 1 Henry IV, H, 
iv, 263, 264, the hostess is called ' niy lady ' by Hal, who has just been 
called 'my lord' by her. See Richard II, V. v, 67.-88. sensible re- 
greets = substantial jrreetinsrs [Clark and Wright] ? feeling salutations 
[Steevens, Hudson] ? II, viii, 48. "Ref/reet strictly means a responsive greet- 



SCENE IX.] THE MERCHANT OF VENlbE. 95 

To wit, besides commends and courteous breath, 

Gifts of rich value. Yet I have not seen 90 

80 likely an ambassador of love : 

A day in April never came so sweet, 

To show how costly summer was at hand. 

As this fore-spurrer comes before his lord. 

Portia. No more, I pray thee : I am half afeard 95 

Thou wilt say anon he is some kin to thee, 
Thou spend'st such high-day wit in praising him. — 
Come, come, Nerissa ; for I long to see 
Quick Cupid's post that comes so mannerly. 

Nerissa. Bassanio, lord Love, if thy will it be ! \_Exeunt. 

ing." Rolfe. Lat. re, back, again; A. S. c/retan, to approach, visit, ad- 
dress; Mid. Eng. greten, to salute; Ger. grilssen, to greet. — Kimi John, 
III, i. 241 ; Richard II, I, iii, 67. — 89. coinineiids = complimeuts ? Richard 
/J,III,i,38. ^ee Abbott, ^51. — 90. yet = up to this time ? notwitlistanding? 
Is Abbott (76) correct in saying, " Yet (up to this time) is only used now 
after a negative"? — 91. likely. 'In the Yankee sense of promising' 
[kolfe] ? In 2 Henry IV, III, ii, 162, Bullcalf is pronounced by Falstaff '"' a 
likely fellow." See same play. III, ii, 238. — We sometimes hear the com- 
mendatory expression, "That's something like,'' meaning "like what we 
want or mean." Furness thinks ' likely ' may here mean good-look inr/. 
— 93. costly a. Allen. — 97. high-day = high-flown [Eccles]? holiday 
[Steevens] ? Hotspur, 1 Henrij IV, I, iii, 46, uses the words, ^rnany holi- 
day and lady terms.' Merry'^Wives, III, ii, 58, 59, "He speaks holiday." 
" That sabbath day was an high day," John, xix, 31. — 99. Cupid's post. 
Cupid, alias Eros, Amor, Cupido, is variously described in the ancient 
poets. See Class. Diet. — post = postman, courier. See in our edition of 
Macbeth, I, iii, 97,98, note on 'post' in "As thick as tale, came post with 
post." — V, i, 46. — mannerly. The suffix -ly as adjective is from A. S. 
-lie ; as adverb it is from A. S. -lice (both meaning like, the e final being 
adverbial). — Abbott, 447. — Cymheline, III, vi, 92. — 100. Bassanio, etc. = 
may it be Bassanio, lord Cupid? — Why should the silver casket be 
assigned to the Prince of Arragon ? Of what was the Spaniard the type ? 
Progress in this scene ? Its value ? 



I 

96 THk MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act III. 



ACT III. 

Scene I. Venice. A Street. 
■Enter Salanio ayid Salarino. 

Salanio. Now, what news on the Rialto? 

iSalarino. Why, yet it lives there unchecked that Antonio 
hath a ship of rich lading wracked on the narrow seas ; the 
Goodwins, I think they call the place : a very dangerous flat 
and fatal, where the carcasses of many a tall ship lie bnried, 
as the}^ say, if my gossip Report be an honest woman of 
her word. 

Salanio. I would she were as lying a gossip in that as ever 
knapped ginger or made her neighbors believe she wept for 
the death of a third husband. But it is true, without an}- 
slips of prolixity or crossing the plain highway of talk, that 

the good Antonio, the honest Antonio, O that I had a 

title good enough to keep his name company ! — 

Salarino. Come, the full stop. 

Salanio. Ha! what ,sayest thou? — Why, the end is, he 
hath lost a ship. 16 

Act III. Scene I. 1. it lives = the rumor prevails? — 3. wracked. 

Spelled vn'ockt in the folio. Richard II, II, i, 267. See note on Macbeth, 
I, iii, 114, in our edition.— narrow seas. II, viii, 28. — l. Gooclw^ins = 
Goodwin Sands, a range of shoals, ten miles long, one and a half hroad, off 
the Isle of Thanet, in the Strait of Dover, county of Kent. They have 
perhai^s proved more fatal to life and property than any other quicksands. 
The storm that in 1703 destroyed the Eddystone lighthouse, wrecked thir- 
teen war-ships on the Goodwins, and most of the crews perished. Floating 
lights and lofty beacons now warn the mariner. But in Shakespeare's time 
they were tenfold more dangerous. Tradition makes them to have been an 
island belonging to Earl Godwin, father of Harold, which was swallowed up 
by the sea about the year 110<d. — King John, V, iii, 11; v, 13. — I think. 
Verisimilitude? — 9. knapped. "He knappeth the spear in sunder," in 
the Bible of 1551, and the Prayer Book version of Psalm xlvi, 9. Dutch 
knappen, to crack, snap, crush, eat; knnpper, hard gingerbread. Old peo- 
ple were fond of ginger, which they nibbled (to keep themselves awake?) 
at church and elsewhere, before chewing-gum was invented, or caraway, 
cloves, cinnamon, or fennel-seeds came into general use. — "As ginger it- 
self is a tough root, a ginger cake must be meant, and probably the sort 
called even now 'ginger snap.'" White. — 14. the full stop = the end 



SCENE I.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 97 

Salarino'. I would it might prove the end of his losses ! 
Solanio. Let me say amen betimes, lest the devil cross 
my prayer ; for here he comes in the likeness of a Jew. — 

Enter Shylock. 

How now, Shylock? what news among the merchants? 20 

Shylock. You knew, none so well, none so well as you, of 
my daughter's flight. 

Salarino. That's certain: I, for my part, knew the tailor 
that made the wings she flew withal. 

Solanio. And Shylock, for his own part, knew the bird 
was fledged ; and then it is the complexion of them all to 
leave the dam. 

Shylock. My own flesh and blood to rebel ! 28 

Salarino. There is more difference between thy flesh and 
hers than between jet and ivory ; more between your bloods 
than there is between red wine and Rhenish. But tell us, 
do you hear whether Antonio have had any loss at sea or no ? 

Shylock. There I have another bad match : a bankrupt, a 
prodigal, who dare scarce show his head on the Rialto ; a 
beggar, that was used to come so smug upon the mart ; let 
him look to his bond : he was wont to call me usurer ; let 
him look to his bond : he was wont to lend money for a 
Christian courtesy ; let him look to his bond. 

Salarino. Why, I am sure, if he forfeit, thou wilt not 
take his flesh : what 's that good for ? 40 

Shylock. To bait fish withal : if it will feed nothing else, it 
will feed my revenge. He hath disgraced me, and hindered 
me half a million ; laughed at my losses, mocked at my gains, 
scorned my nation, thwarted my bargains, cooled my friends, 
heated mine enemies ; and what 's the reason ? I am a Jew. 
Hath not a Jew eyes ! hath not a Jew hands, organs, dimen- 

of the sentence ? — 24. wings = clothes which she wore as a disguise ? — 
withal. See note on 11, vii, 12. Line 41. — 26. complexion. II, vii, 79. 

— 31. red w^ine and Rlienisli. I, ii, 83. — 33. matcli = agreement ? 
bargain ? person who copes with one as an antagonist or competitor ? con- 
test? — Is Antonio "matched" against him? — A. S. msBcca, a companion, 
comrade, spouse; Mid. Eng. macche, mate. — Cymbeline, III, vi, 30. — 34. 
prodigal. What propriety in calling Antonio a ' prodigal ' ? — 35. smug. 
A weakened form of smuJc, from Dan. smuJc, pretty, fine, fair; Old Swed. 
smuck, elegant, fine; Ger. schmucJc, trim, spruce; attire, dress, ornament. 
Skeat. — Lear, IV, vi, 178, "I will die bravely, like a smug bridegroom." 

— 41. withal. See line 24 above; also II, vii, 12. — 42, 43. hindered me 
half a million (ducats). How? — Abbott, 198 a. — I, iii, 38, 39.-45. the 



< 

98 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [aCT III. 

sions, senses, affections, passions? fed with tlie same food, 
hurt with the same weapons, subject to the same diseases, 
healed by the same means, warmed and cooled by the same 
winter and summer, as a Christian is? If 5'^ou prick us, do 
we not bleed? if you tickle us, do we not laugh? if you poi- 
son us, do we not die? and if you wrong us, shall we not re- 
venge ? If we are like you in the rest, we will resemble you 
in that. If a Jew wrong a Christian, what is his humility? 
Revenge. If a Christian wrong a Jew, what should his suf- 
ferance be, by Christian example? Why, revenge. The vil- 
lany you teach me, I will execute ; and it shall go hard but 
I will better the instruction. 

Enter a Servant. 

Servant. Gentlemen, my master Antonio is at his house, 
and desires to speak with you both. 60 

Solar ino. We have been up and down to seek him. 

Enter Tubal. 

Salanio. Here comes another of the tribe : a third cannot 
be matched, unless the devil himself turn Jew. 

[^Exeunt Salanio^ Salarino, and Servant. 

Shylock. How now, Tubal! what news from Genoa? hast 
thou found my daughter? 65 

Tubal. I often came where I did hear of her, but cannot 
find her. 

Shylock. Why, there, there, there, there ! a diamond gone, 
cost me two thousand ducats in Frankfort ! The curse never 
fell upon our nation till now ; I never felt it till now ; two 
thousand ducats in that ; and other precious, precious jewels. 
I would my daughter were dead at my foot, and the jewels 
in her ear ! Would she were hearsed at my foot, and the 

reason. So the folios. The quartos have 7i is reason? As good? 54. liu- 
mility =: kindness, benevolence [Schmidt, approved by Furness] ? meek- 
ness ? — 57. go hard, etc. = I will spare no effort to outdo you in what you 
teach me [Rolfe] ? the obstacles must be great indeed which shall prevent 
me from improving upon your teaching [Clark and Wright] ? I will work 
mighty hard rather than fail to surpass my teachers [Hudson] ? — Of 41-58, 
Francois Victor Hugo (1872) says it " is the most eloquent plea that the 
human voice has ever dared to utter for a despised race." — 63. matched 
= found to match them? — 66. often came. What time had elapsed since 
the elopement ? — cannot. Tense ? — 72. dead at my foot . . . ear, etc. 
Real significance of this wish, and of the next one about the hearse, etc. ? 



SCENE I.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 



99 



ducats in her coffin ! No news of them? — Why, so : and I 
know not how much is spent in the search : wiiy, thou loss 
upon loss ! the thief gone with so much, and so much to find 
the thief ; and no satisfaction, no revenge : nor no ill luck 
stirring but what lights o' my shoulders ; no sighs but o' my 
breathing ; no tears but o' my shedding. 

Tubal. Yes, other men have ill luck too. Antonio, as I 
heard in Genoa, — ^^ 

Shylock. What, what, what? ill luck, ill luck? 

Tubal. Hath an argosy cast away, coming from Tripolis. 

Shylock. I thank God ! I thank God ! Is it true ? is it true ? 

Tubal. I spoke with some of the sailors that escaped the 
wrack. gg 

Shylock. I thank thee, good Tubal ! — Good news, o-ood 
news ! ha, ha ! — Here ? in Genoa? * 

Tubal. Your daughter spent in Genoa, as I heard, in one 
night fourscore ducats. 9q 

Shylock. Thou stick'st a dagger in me. I shall never see my 
gold again. Fourscore ducats at a sitting ! fourscore ducats ! 

Tubal. There came divers of Antonio's creditors in my com- 
pany to Venice, that swear he cannot choose but break. 

Shylock. I am very glad of it. I '11 plague him ; I '11 tor- 
ture him. I am glad of it. " «j(3 

Tubal. One of them shewed me a ring that he had of your 
daughter for a monkey. 

Shylock. Out upon her ! Thou torturest me. Tubal : it 



What charitable construction can you put upon it? — 74. Why, so = well 
be It so? so abominable? Does the phrase express acquiescence? or im- 
patience /— The same expression is supposed to imply acquiescence or 
approbation m i?icAard //, II, ii, 87.-75. thou. Shakespearian per- 
sonification ?- The second folio (1632) has " then," which White and nmnv 
others prefer. Do you? Which is the more animated? — 83 Tripolis 
I, 111, 16. — 88. Here. So all the old editions. Rowe changed here to where' 
and all the editors have followed his example. There is no interrogation 
point after here nor after Genoa in the early editions. Might Shylock in 
his excitement, naturally ask, " Here ? " - Furness thinki that 'here in 
irenoa may be spoken with eager joy, as contrasting with the rumor of 
the iar-off disaster m the Enghsh Channel. Judge! — 100. turquoise. 
bpelled also Turkies, turkesse, Turkis, etc. How pronounced ^ — A pre- 
^^?^s stone, bluish-green in color, and susceptible of a high polish. It was 
said that it faded or brightened according to the health of the wearer : 
also, that It averted danger. — ''The turkesse which who haps to wear. Is 
otten kept from peril," 1/wses ^^?/siwm, by Drayton (died 1631). — "The 
lurkeys doth move when there is any peril prepared to him that weareth 
It, Fenton s t^ecret Wonderi^ of Nature (1569). — " With the Germans it 
IS yet the gem appropriated to the ring, the ' gage d'amour ' presented 



100 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act ill. 

was my turquoise ; I had it of Leah when I was a bachelor : 
I would not have given it for a wilderness of monkeys. lOl 

Tubal. But Antonio is certainly undone. 

Sliylock. Nay, that's true, that's very true. Go, Tubal, 
fee me an officer ; bespeak him a fortnight before. I will 
have the heart of him, if he forfeit ; for, were he out of 
Venice, I can make what merchandise I will. Go, go. Tubal, 
and meet me at our synagogue : go, good Tubal ; at our 
synagogue, Tubal. \^Exeunt. 

Scene II. Belmont. A Room in Portia's House. 

Enter Bassanio, Portia, Gratiano, Nerissa, and 
Attendants. 

Portia. I pray you, tarry : pause a day or two 
Before you hazard ; for, in choosing wrong, 
I lose your company : therefore forbear a while. 
There 's something tells me, but it is not love, 
I would not lose you ; and you know 3'ourself , 5 

Hate counsels not in such a quality. 
But lest you should not understand me well, — 
And yet a maiden hath no tongue but thought, — 
I would detain you here some month or two, 
Before you venture for me. I could teach 3^ on 10 

How to choose right, but then I am forsworn ; 
So will I never be : so may you miss me ; 
But if you do, you '11 make me wish a sin, 

by the lover on the acceptance of his suit, the permanence of its color being 
believed to depend on the constancy of his affection," Natural History of 
Gems, King, quoted by Clark and Wright. — Likewise said to " take away 
all enmity, and to reconcile man and wife," Thomas Nichols. — 100. I had 
it of Leah, etc. Furness quotes from Le Tourneur (1781) the following 
translation of this sentence: "Je I'achetai de Lee, etant encore gar9on"! 
— 107. our synagogue. There were at least seven synagogues in Venice. 
Cory at. Was it here that the oat/i was taken, mentioned in IV, i, 36? — 
Why is 'synagogue' repeated? — Object of this scene? Kevelation of 
character in it? Dramatic value? Is Shakespeare charitable to Shylock? 
Scene II. G. in such a quality, in the way tliat I am doing [Meikle- 
john]?=to such effect? — 7. 8, 9, 10. The reasoning here?— Meaning of 
line 8, And yet a maiden hath no tonsrue but thous-bt? See the magazine 
Shakespeariana, for December, 18Sfi, pp. 5B9, 570, 571. "Portia loved 
Bassanio, but felt herself restrained from telling him so by maidenly mod- 
esty and social conventionality"? "Portia means, 'And yet, since a 
maiden may only think and not speak her thou2:hts, you will not under- 
stand me, however long you stay'" [Clark and Wriofht] ? — May it be 
spoken playfully, with good-natured irony ? Girls think, but never talk ! 



SCENE II.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 101 

That I had been forsworn. Beshrew your eyes, 

They have o'eriook'd me and divided me ; 15 

One half of me is yours, the other half yours, 

Mine own, I would say ; but if mine, then yours. 

And so all yours. O, these naughty times 

Puts bars between the owners and their rights ! 

And so, though yours, not yours. Prove "it so, 20 

Let Fortune go to hell for it, not I. 

I speak too long ; but 't is to peize the time, 

To eke it, and to draw it out in length, 

To stay you from election. 

Bassanio. Let me choose ; 

For as I am, I live upon the rack. 25 

Portia. Upon the rack, Bassanio ! then confess 
What treason there is mingled with your love. 

Bassanio. None but that ugly treason of mistrust. 
Which makes me fear the enjoying of my love. 
There may as well be amity and life 30 

'Tween snow and fire, as treason and mj' love. 



— 14. beshrew. II, vi, 52. — 15. o'eriook'd. Malone cites, to show that 
this IS a term in witchcraft, signifying ' eye-bitten,' bewitched, " Vile worm 
thou wast o'eriook'd even from thy birth," J/err?/ Wives, V, v, 80 — 
18. naughty = wicked. Now a nursery word, but once very stronoly 
expressive. See III, iii, 9. — puts. See note on hath, line 262 ; and III 1v 
o5. Abbott, 332.-20. though yours, not yours. Malone suggested 
that the second yovrs is a dissyllable? Test it. May we make a pause 
before i^rove, to fill the time of a syllable ? See our edition of Hamlet I i' 
129, 132, 135; and our edition of Macbeth, I, ii, 5, 7, 34; II i 51 etc — 
Prove it so = should it prove so ? If it prove that I am not yours let 
fortune pay the penalty ? — " Let fortune go to hell for robbing you of your 
]ust due, not I for violating my oath" [Heath]? It would be like the 
torment of hell for me to lose you ? — Is she over-forcible in her language '> 

— 22. peize = retard by hanging weights upon [Steevens] ? weigh or balanlje • 
hguratively to keep in suspense, delay [Henley] ? weigh with deliberation 
each precious moment of [Clark and Wright] ? suspend, retard [Hudson, 
VVhite, etc.] ? — Lat. pe?ifZ??-e, to suspend, weigh; pensare, to weigh out, to 
ponder; Fr. peser, to weigh. "Lest leaden slumber peize me down to- 
morrow." Birhanl III, V, iii, 106. In Kim/ John, II, i. 575, 2)eized = poised 
balanced. — Rowe, Johnson, and Dyce reM piece. Happy coniecture ^— 
26. confess. Alluding to the devilish use of the rack to extort confessions, 
ihrockmorton's case in 1584, and that of Squires in 1598 (if the play was 
written after the latter date) must have been in his mind. It was long 
after this play was written that ''Bacon went [in 1615] to the Tower to 
listen to the yells of Peacham." and "wrote to the King, complaining that 
Peacham had a dumb devil. " Macaulay's Essay on Lord Bacon. — 29 fear 
the enjoying = fear to enjoy? doubt whether I shall enioy ? fear the not 
enjoying [Hudson]? fear as to the enjoying? Abbott, 200. — Allen, who 
would mentally supply not, instances Lat. vereor ut, as a parallel expres- 
sion. —30. lite. Walker suggested, and Dyce and Hudson adopted, league 



102 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act hi. 

Portia. Ay, but I fear you speak upon the rack, 
AVhere men enforced do speak anything. 

Bassanio. Promise me life, and I '11 confess the truth. 

Portia. Well then, confess and live. 

Bassanio. Confess and love 35 

Had been the very sum of my confession. 
O happy torment, when my torturer 
Doth teach me answers for deliverance ! 
But let me to my fortune and the caskets. 

Portia. Away, then ! I am lock'd in one of them : 40 

If you do love me, you will find me out. 
Nerissa and the rest, stand all aloof. — 
Let music sound while he doth make his choice ; 
Then, if he lose, he makes a swan-like end, 
Fading in music : that the comparison 45 

May stand more propei*, my eyes shall be the stream 
And watery death-bed for him. He may win ; 
And what is music then? Then music is 
Even as the flourish when true subjects bow 
To a new-crowned monarch : such it is 50 

As are those dulcet sounds in break of day, 
That creep into the dreaming bridegroom's ear, 
And summon him to marriage. Now he goes 
With no less presence, but with much more love, 

in place of 'life.' Judiciously? — 33. where men enforced do speak 

anything. A noble recognition of the absurdity of this hellish mode of 
getting at the truth, aud reminding of that other grand utterance, •' It is 
an heretic that makes the fire, Not she which burns in 't," Winter's Tale, 
II, iii, 115, 11(3. Was Shakespeare the first Englishman to take this sub- 
lime position ? — 35, 36. confess and love had been, etc. = had you said 
'love' instead of 'live,' you would have exi^ressed all that I have to con- 
fess [Clark and Wright] ? — snni = ' sum total ' ? — 37, 38. torturer doth 
teach. " Doubtless many a poor man whose office it was to work the rack, 
and whose heart had not been burnt to a cinder by theological rancor, had 
pity on his victim and whispered in his ear 'answers for deliverance.'" 
Hudson. — 44. svran-like. "Will plav the swan, And die in music," 
Othello, Y, ii, 246, 247 ; Kinr/ John, V, vii, 21, 22. The notion that " Death 
darkens his eye and unplumes his wings, But his sweetest song is the last 
he sings," is said to have been derived from Ovid's Heroides, vii, 1. — Any 
solid foundation for such a belief ? — 45. fading = vanishing ? dying ? — 
Hamlet, I, i, 157; Tempest, I, ii, 398.- — Eccles remarks on the fine musical 
cadence in these lines. — The exact moment of coronation was signalized 
by the blare of trumpets.— 46. See V, i, 230, 231. —49. flourish. ' A fan- 
tastic or decorative musical passage, a strain of triumph or bravado, not 
forming part of a regular musical composition.' Webster. — Lat. ./?os, 
floris, a flower; florere, to bloom ; florescere, to flower, bloom ; Fr.fleurir, 
to flourish. — 51. break of day. The musicians under the bridegroom's 
windows used to awaken him early and accompany him. — 54. presence 



SCENE II.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 103 

Than young Alcides, when he did redeem 55 

The vh'gin tribute paid by howling Troy 

To the sea-monster : I stand for sacrifice ; 

The rest aloof are the Dardanian wives, 

With bleared visages, come forth to view 

The issue of th' exploit. Go, Hercules ! 60 

Live thoii, I live. With much, much more dismay 

I view the fight, than thou that mak'st the fray. 

A Song, whilst Bassanio comraents on the caskets to himself. 

Tell me ivhere is fancy bred, 
Or in the heart or in the head? 
Hoiv begot, hoio nourished^ 65 

Reijly, reply. 

= mien? dignity of mien [Johnson]? — more love. Hesione, daughter 
of Laomedon, king of Troy, to propitiate Neptune, whom her father had 
cheated out of the pay due for building the walls of Troy, was fastened to 
a rock, in order that she might be devoured by a sea-monster sent by the 
irate deity to ravage the coasts of the country. Hercules rescued hel-, not 
for love, but in fulfilment of a contract with her father, who promised him 
a couple of horses that had been given to Tros by Jove in exchange for 
Ganymedes. See Class. Diet. — Ovid's Metamorphoses, xi, 211-214. — 58. 
Dardanian = Trojan. So called from Dardanus, mythical ancestor of the 
Trojans. Dardania was a district of the Troad, along the Hellespont. — 
wives originally meant loomen, afterwards ' married women.' — A. S. loif, 
a woman, wife, remarkable as being a neuter substantive with plural loif, 
like the singular. SJceat. So in Henry V, HI, iii,40? — 57-60. There "is 
something very Greekish in this [description] , which seems to show that 
Shakespeare was acquainted with the structure of the Greek drama. 
Hunter. — 61. much, mucli more. So the second folio (1632) and 
Heyes's {i.e., the second) quarto (1600) repeat the word 'much.' The 
metre accounted for ? — " The pause which a proper reading of the passage 
requires after ' Live thou, I live,' entirely perfects the elocutionary rhythm 
of the line ; and Shakespeare, who thought only how his verse would sound 
in an actor's mouth, not how it would look to a critic's eye, often used this 
freedom." White. So says White in his first edition ; but it is noticeable 
that in his second he silently repeats the 'much.' — Abbott, 361, makes 
the first ' live ' an instance of the subjunctive indicated by the position of 
the verb before the subject. — 63. fancy = love [Steevens, Rolfe, Schmidt, 
etc.] ? that illusive power or action of the mind which has misled the other 
suitors, who, as Portia says, ' have the wisdom by their wit to lose ' 
[Hudson] ? a feeling neither bred in heart nor in brain, but in the eye 
only, penetrating no deeper, and lasting only while its object is in sight 
[Clark and Wright]? a passing sentiment [Weiss]? "And the illusion 
thus engendered in the eyes, and fed with gazing, dies just there where it 
is bred, as soon as it is brought to the test of experience by opening the 
wrong casket." Hudson. — &Q. Reply, reply. Hanmer and Johnson, also 
Hudson in his Harvard edition, print these words as a stage direction. 
Wisely? — " These words, in all the old copies, stand as a marginal direc- 
tion." Johnson. Are they an integral part of the song? — Examine the 
song, and see if it contains any hint to guide Bassanio in his choice. — 



104 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act III. 

It is engendered in the eyes, 

WitJi gazing fed; and fancy dies 

In the cradle tvhere it lies. 

Let us all riyig fancy's knell : » 70 

I HI begin it., — Ding, dong, bell. 

All. Ding, dong, bell. 

Bassanio. So may the outward shews be least themselves : 
The world is still deceiv'd with ornament. 
In law, what plea so tainted and corrupt 75 

But, being season'd with a gracious voice, 
Obscures the shew of evil? In religion, 
What damned error, but some sober brow 
Will bless it, and approve it with a text, 
Hiding the grossness with fair ornament? 80 

There is no vice so simple but assumes 
Some mark of virtue on his outward parts : 
How many cowards, whose hearts are all as false 
As stairs of sand, wear yet upon their chins 
The beards of Hercules and frowning Mars, 85 

What are we to infer from the word so, at the beginning of his comments ? 
— "A hint indeed! It is the very breadth of broadness." Weiss. (See 
Weiss among the Critical Comments, ante.) — 07. eyes, etc. " The song 
describes in exquisite imagery the birtli and death of a transient affection, 
'engendered in tlie eye/ not in the lieart." Rolfe. — Twelfth Niqht, 
I. i, 9 to 14; Mwh Ado, III, ii, 28, 29; 33, 34.-74. still. I, i, 17, 136.— 
76. season'd. Suggested by 'tainted'? — "To season a brotiier's dead 
love, which she would keep fresh," Twelfth Night, I, i, 30, 31. — From 
'v/sA, to sow; severe, satum, to sow, plant; satio, a planting, seed-time. 
The time of sowing or spring-time seems to have been regarded as the 
season, 23ar excellence; Fr. saiso7i, season, due time. Skeat. How is the 
sense of the verb season, to give relish or flavor, derived? — gracious, 
pleasing, winning favor [Johnson]? — 79. approve = justify ? prove? 
make good ? Often so in Shakespeare. " I am full sorry that he approves 
[i.e., justifies, makes good the assertion of] the common liar," Antony and 
Cleopatra, I, i, 59, GO; Macbeth, I, vi, 4. — 81. vice. So second folio. The 
quartos and first folio have voice or voyce. Any sense in voice ? — simple, 
which means sheer, unmixed, and also ' low-born ' as oj^posed to ' gentle,' 
suggested to Shakespeare the metaphor which follows, referring to the 
assumption of heraldic bearings by pretenders to gentility. ClarJc and 
Wright. Likely? — 82. liis = its? or is this a personification of vice? — 
For the use of his instead of ' its' in the time of Shakespeare, see in our 
edition of Hamlet, note on it, I, ii, 216. — Abbott, 228.-84. stairs. Chil- 
dren in New England, playing in the moist sand, are fond of building stair- 
ways on the slope of the banks. — A. S. stseger, a stair, a step. The g passes 
into y as usual, and just as A. S. dseg became day, so A. S. stsegar, became 
stayer, steyer, steir. The literal sense is ' a step to climb by,' ' a mounter,' 
from A. S. stdh, present tense of stigan, to climb. Skeat. The folio has 
stayers, which Knight, Hudson, and some others adopt, as a monosylla- 
ble, signifying 'props,' 'supports,' or 'stays.' Reasonable? — "I wonder 



SCENE II.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 105 

Who, inward searcli'd, have Uvers -white as milk ; 

And these assume but valor's excrement 

To render them redoubted ! Look on beauty, 

And you shall see 't is purchas'd by the weight ; 

Which therein works a miracle in nature, . 90 

Making them lightest that wear most of it. 

So are those crisped snaky golden locks, 

Which make such wanton gambols with the wind, 

Upon supposed fairness, often known 

To be the dowry of a second head, 95 

The skull that bred them in the sepulchre. 

Thus ornament is but the guiled shore 

To a most dangerous sea, the beauteous scarf 

Veiling an Indian beauty ; — in a word, 



if there be not here an allusion to the mirage in the sandy desert." Allen. 
— 86. livers white, etc., II, i, 6,7.— 87. excrement = excrescence ? out- 
growth? The word is repeatedly used of the hair or heard by Shake- 
speare; also of the finger-nails. Winter's Tale, IV, iv, 695, 696; Hamlet, 
III, iv, 119 ; Love's Labor's Lost, V, i, 92, 93. — Shakespeare evidently derives 
the word from excrescere, to grow out, from ex, out, and crescere, to grow. — 
91. lightest, most frivolous [Meiklejohn] ? most wanton [Malone] ? vainest 
[Hudson] ? V, i, 129, 130 ; Two Gentlemen of Verona, I, ii, 84.-93. crisped 
= curled [Steevens] ? Supposed to he allied to carpere, to pluck, to card wool ; 
\/karp, to shear; whence Aarues^; Mid. Eng. crisp, wrinkled, curled. 
Skeat. — Mi\tovi'& Comns, 981, has'' crisped shades and bowers.'— locks = 
"'switches,' artificial chignons, 'waterfalls,' and other like abominations 
made of false hair" ! Old Bachelor. — M. upon supposed fairness = 
surmounting fictitious beauty [Clark and Wright] ? on the strength of their 
fictitious beauty [Rolfe] ? placed upon fictitious beauty [iMeiklejohn] ? — 
95. dowry. "Such artificial deformed periuufjs that they were fitter to 
furnish a theatre, or for her that in a stage-play should represent some hag 
of hell, than to be used by a Christian woman." Barnahy Rich (1615). 
See Shakespeare's sentiments on the subject in Sonnet Ixviii ; Timon of 
Athens, IV, iii, 143, 144; Love's Labor's Lost, IV, iii, 254-256. Queen 
Elizabeth, when more than sixty years old, wore a large mass of golden 
false hair. — 96. Supply the ellipsis. — 97. sailed = treacherous [Steevens]? 
beguiling, or full of guile [Clark and Wright, Hudson] ? Passive form 
with active meaning, like Latin deponent verbs? This is the common 
explanation; and Marsh gives luell-spoken, fair-spoken, and the old ivell- 
seen (having a deep insight) as similar instances. So Rolfe, concurring, 
gives loell-read. Abbott, 374. "We need not suppose that a passive par- 
ticiple is here used for an active one. Just as ' delighted ' in Measure for 
Measure, and in Othello, I, iii, 288, means ' endowed with delights,' deliciis 
exornata, as Sidney Walker gives it, so here 'guiled' means endowed, 
infested unth guiles." Furness ; Abbott, 294; Lear, III, iv, 31. — The 
second, third, and fourth folios read guilded. What think you of the 
latter reading? — A. S. toil; Old Fi: guile ; Mid. Eng. gile, wile, a trick, 
guile. — 99. Indian. Shakespeare repeatedly uses 'Indian' in a deroga- 
tory sense. Tempest, U,h, 31; Othello, V, ii, 347. Montaigne (Essay si ii, 
12) says, "The Indians describe it [beauty] as black and swarthy, with 
blabbered thick lips, with a broad and flat nose." — Florio's translation of 



106 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act III. 

The seeming truth which cunning times put on lOC 

To entrap the wisest. Therefore, thou gaud}' gold, 

Hard food for Midas, I will none of thee ; 

Nor none of thee, thou pale and common drudge 

'Tween man and man : but thou, thou meagre lead, 

Which rather threatenest than dost promise aught, 105 

Thy paleness moves me more than eloquence ; 

And here choose I. Joy be the consequence ! 

Portia. [^Aside] How all the other passions fleet to air, 
As doubtful thoughts, and rash-embrac'd despair. 
And shuddering fear, and green-eyed jealousy ! lio 

O love ! be moderate ; allay thy ecstasy ; 
In measure rain thy joy ; scant this excess. 

Montaigne was published in 1603. Theobald proposed to punctuate thus : 
veiling an Indian; beauty, in a word, etc. Many who have been dissatis- 
fied with the usual reading have proposed substitutes for " beauty," thus : 
'dowdy' (Hanmer), 'feature' (Hudson), 'bosom' (Clark and Wright); 
others: 'body,' 'gipsy,' 'idol,' 'visage,' 'beldam,' 'poisoner,' 'feature,' 
'deity,' 'suttee,' etc. — The repetition 'beauteous' and 'beauty' is not 
un-Shakespearian ? — 102. Midas, king of Phrygia. See Class. Bid. The 
god Dionysus (Bacchus) granted his desire that whatever he touched 
might become gold, and the very food in the king's mouth hardened into 
the precious metal! Ovid's Metamorphoses, xi, 102-145; Gower's Con- 
fessio Amantis, Book v. — Shakespeare is continually drawing from Ovid. 
— I will none. "Ye would none of my reproof." Proverbs, i, 25. — 
103. pale and common drudge. " To whom pale day ... is but a 
drudge." Chapman's Hymnus, 1594. — 106. paleness. So the folio and 
both quartos. Warburton suggested plainness, and Theobald, and, after 
him, most editors, have adopted it. Plainness, at first sight, seems a better 
word ; but ' paleness ' makes good sense. Where shall we sto]3 if we adopt 
every seeming improvement ? And, if we look closer, is not pAoinness a 
form ©f ' eloquence ' or forcible language; and, as Bailey says, elegance, 
rather than eloquence, its proper antithesis? Paleness, indicative of 
deepest earnestness, appeals not to compassion alone! Dr. Farmer retains 
' paleness,' but reads ' stale ' for ' i^ale ' in the third preceding line, citing 
for antithesis between ' j)aleness' and 'eloquence,' lines 1)3-96 and 101-103 
of Midsummer Night's Dream, V, i. — " Overwork between man and man 
makes him [the drudge] ' pale.' " Furness. Which is the better in anti- 
thesis with 'gaudy,' p«Ze or sfaZe.^ — 108. Notice that in great excitement 
the verse sometimes passes into rhyme. Any inference from this fact ? 
— 110. green-ey'd. Othello, III, iiij 166, reads, " It (jealousy) is the green- 
eyed monster." But in Romeo and Juliet, III, v, 220, Midsummer Night's 
Bream, V, i, 326, and in Dante's Purgatorio, xxxi, 116, Longfellow's Span- 
ish Student, and elsewhere, we find ' green ' applied as a favorable epithet 
adding beauty to eyes. It is a sickly color in Macheth, I, vii, 37. — 111. 
O love, etc. Scan! "As long as the rhythm is smooth, I cannot believe 
that Shakespeare's ear was offended by an Alexandrine." Fvrness ; 
Abbott, 512. — 112. rain. The first quarto has range; the second quarto 
and first two folios, raine; the third and fourth quartos, reine ; the third 
and fourth folios, rain. It is a nice question which is better, rein or rain. 
Choose! "It rained down fortune," \ Henry IV, V, i, 47; "rein thy 
tongue," Love's Labor's Lost, V, ii, 650. Furness much prefers rein. — 114. 



SCENE ir.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 107 

I feel too much thy blessing ; make it less, 
For fear I surfeit. 

Bassanio. What find I here? 

[^Opening the leaden casket. 
Fair Portia's counterfeit ! What demi-god 115 

Hath come so near creation ? Move these e3'es ? 
Or whether, riding on the balls of mine, 
Seem they in motion? Here are sever'd lips, 
Parted with sugar breath : so sweet a bar 
Shoiild sunder such sweet friends. Here in her hairs 120 
The painter plays the spider, and hath woven 
A golden mesh t' entrap the hearts of men 
Faster than gnats in cobwebs : but her eyes ! — 
How could he see to do them? having made one, 
Methinks it should have power to steal both his, 125 

And leave itself unfurnish'd. Yet look, how far 
The substance of my praise doth wrong this shadow 
In nnderprizing it, so far this shadow 
Doth limp behind the substance. — Here 's the scroll. 
The continent and summary of my fortune. 130 

surfeit. Lat. mper, above; f actus, made, done ; from fac-ere, to make, 
do; Fr. sur, over, above; fait, done; Old Fr. sorfait, excess, old participle 
of sorf aire; Mid. Eng. siirfet. I. ii. 5. — 115. counterfeit. One of those 
many words, once of an innocent meaning, now used in a bad sense. — 
Inference as to prevalent depravity ? — Lat. contra, against; facere, to 
make; Fr. contre, against; /a zre, to make; contrefaire, to imitate, coun- 
terfeit; contrefait, counterfeit. Hamlet, III, iv, 54; Timon of Athens, V, 
i, 73. — 117. or whether. Redundancy? ^6&oi^, 136. — 120." hairs. The 
plural is common in the old writers where we use the collective singular. 
So in Pope's Rape of the Lock. — 123. faster. A. S. fxst, Mid. Eng. 
fast, firm, fixed. Compare the Gr. -ttcS-, -ped-, in eixneSo?, empedos, fast, 
steadfast, and -pid- in Lat. op-pid-iim, a fastness, fort, town. Skeat. — In 
this description of a beautiful face, what has Shakespeare omitted ? — 124. 
having. Is the v in this word softened or slurred ? Abbott, 466. See on 
'poverty.' IV, i, 262; 'riveted,' V, i, 167.-126. unfurnish'd = unaccom- 
panied by the other features? not equipped with its fellow-eye? So in 
Fletcher's Lover's Progress, ' unfurnish'd ' means unmatched with an an- 
tagonist.— " If Apelles had been tasked to have drawn her counterfeit, her 
two bright-burning lamps would have so dazzled his quick-seeing senses, 
that, quite despairing to express with his cunning pencil so admirable a work 
of nature, he had been enforced to have staid his hand, and left this earthly 
Venus unfinished." Greene's History of Fair Bellora, cited by Steevens. 
He also quotes from the same novel what may have suggested the ' golden 
mesh to entrap the hearts'; viz., "What are our curled and crisped locks 
but snares and nets to catch and entangle the hearts of gazers ?" — 129. 
limp behind, etc. So Tempest, IV, i, 10, 11. — 130. continent. In Mid- 
summer NighV s Dream, II, i, 92, 'continents' means river-banks as contain- 
ing the stream. So in Hamlet, IV,_iv, 64, ' continent '= receptacle. Lat. con, 
together; tenere, to hold; continere, -to contain; continens, containing.— 



108 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act III. 

You that choose not by the vieiv, 

Chance as fair, and choose as true! 

/Since this fortune falls to you, 

Be content and seek no new. 

If you he tvell pleas' d with this, 135 

And hold your fortune for your bliss, 

Turn you lohere your lady is, ^ 

And claim her ivith a loving Mss. 
A gentle scroll. — Fair lady, by your leave ; 
I come by note, to give and to receive. \_Kissing her. 

Like one of two contending in a prize, 141 

That thinks he hath done well in people's eyes, 
Hearing applause and universal shout, 
Giddy in spirit, still gazing in a doubt 

Whether those peals of praise be his or no ; 145 

So, thrice-fair lady, stand I, even so, 
As doubtful whether what I see be true. 
Until confirm'd, sign'd, ratified by you. 

Portia. You see me, Lord Bassanio, where I stand. 
Such as I am : though for myself alone 150 

I would not be ambitious in m}^ wish. 
To wish myself much better ; yet, for you 
I would be trebled twenty times myself, 
A thousand times more fair, ten thousand times more rich, 
That only to stand high in your account, 155 

I might in virtues, beauties, livings, friends. 
Exceed account : but the full sum of me 
Ls sum of — nothing ; which, to term in gross, 

140. note = scroll ? written warrant [Clark and Wright] ? written direction 
[Hudson]? The direction in the scroll? — 'Note' is memorandam, in 
Winter's Tale, IV, iii, 44; written list, in Macbeth, III, iii, 10. — 141. prize. 
Metonymy ? " The Greeks used adkov, athlon, for the prize and for the 
contest." Clark and Wright. — 144. giddy, etc. Scan! To smooth the 
line, Pope read "gazing still in doubt"; Furuess makes 'spirit' a 
monosyllable, and accents ' in.' But why smooth it ? It is higher art to 
make the sound convey the sense, the verse seeming to be giddy, and 
the movement to reel ! — 145. peals. The first quarto [Roberts] has pear- 
les. " Pearles of praise " is repeatedly found in old writers, as in Whet- 
stone's Arbour of Virtue (1576). — Preference?— 149. me. The second, 
third, and fourth f.olios have my. AVell? — 155. account. Play on the 
word in line 157 ? — 156. livings = estates [Clark and Wright] ? posses- 
sions, fortune [Rolf e] ? — An ecclesiastical meaning? — V, i, 260; Borneo 
and Jidiet, IV, v, 36 ; Mark, xii, 44; Luke, xv, 12. — 158. notMng. So the 
folios. The quartos have somethinr/. "I should prefer the reading of 
the folio, as it is Portia's intention, in this speech, to undervalue herself." 
31. Mason. Warburton says we should read ' some of something.' Clark 



SCENE II.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 



109 



Is an iinlesson'd girl, unscliool'd, nnpractis'di 

Happy in this, she is not yet so old ' 160 

But she may learn ; happier than in this, 

She is not bred so dull but she can learn ; 

Happiest of all is that her gentle spirit 

Commits itself to yours to be directed, 

As from her lord, her governor, her king. 165 

Myself and what is mine to you and yours 

Is now converted : but now I was the lord 

Of this fair mansion, master of my servants, 

Queen o'er myself; and even now, but now, 

This house, these servants, and this same myself 170 

Are yours, my lord. I give them with this ring ; 

Which when you part from, lose, or give away. 

Let it presage the ruin of your love. 

And be my vantage to exclaim on you. 

Bassanio. Madam, you have bereft me of all words ; 175 
Only my blood speaks to you in my veins ; 
And there is such confusion in my powers 
As, after some oration fairly spoke 
By a beloved prince, there doth appear 

Among the buzzing pleased multitude ; 180 

Where every something, being blent together. 
Turns to a wild of nothing, save of joy, 
Express'd an4 not express'd. But when this ring 

and Wright, who are nothing if not logical, say, " The folio reading, ' noth- 
ing, which to term in gross,' etc., would be a singular anti-climax, if it 
were not a direct self-contradiction." Decide! — Is she in a calm, collected 
mood ? or excited, and inclined to self-abnegation ? If the former, ' some- 
thing ' ; if the latter, ' nothing ' ? — to term in gross = to define gen- 
erally [Clark and Wright] ? to sum up? — 161. Scan! Malone makes 
' learn ' a dissyllable. We follow the second, third, and fourth folios, 
making the usual change of ' then ' to than. Allen thinks an in is ' ab- 
sorbed ' in 'then,' or 'than.' Probable? See line 291. — 163. happiest 
of all is. All the folios and quartos have is, not ' in.' But White, Hudson, 
Rolfe (in his latest edition), Furness, and most others, adopt the ' in ' of 
the Collier manuscript (of folio of 1632) in place of is. Rightfully ? — 167. 
lord = master. It is certain that the word is a compound, and that the 
former syllable is A. S. hlaf, a loaf. It is extremely likely that ore? stands 
for iveard, a warden, keeper; whence 7i?a/-roertrd = loaf -keeper; i.e., the 
master of the house. STceat. — 171. ring. The interchange of rings, as m 
Twelfth Night, V, i, 153, was not uncommon in betrothals. What special 
dramatic purpose in it here ? — III, i. 96, 99.-174. vantage = opportunity 
[Dyce] ? the position of one who is ' master of the situation ' [Clark and 
Wright] ? sufficient ground ? — exclaim on. ' On ' is thus used in 
Shakespeare with this verb seven times. — 176. Only. Abbott, 420. — 178. 
spoke. See undertook, II, iv, 7; Abbott, 343. — 187. our wishes. What 



110 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [aCT III. 

Parts from this finger, then parts life from hence : 

O, then be bold to say, Bassanio's dead ! 185 

Nerissa. My lord and lady, it is now our time, 
That have stood by and seen our wishes prosper, 
To cry, good joy. Good joy, my lord and lady ! 

G7'atiano. My lord Bassanio and my gentle lady, 
I wish you all the joy that 3'ou can wish ; 190 

For I am sure you can wish none from me : 
And when your honors mean to solemnize 
The bargain of your faith, I do beseech you, 
Even at that time I may be married too. 

Bassanio. With all my heart, so thou canst get a wife. 195 

Gratiano. I thank 3'our lordship, you have got me one. 
My eyes, my lord, can look as swift as yours : 
You saw the mistress, I beheld the maid ; 
You lov'd, I lov'd ; for intermission 

No more pertains to me, my lord, than you. 200 

Your fortune stood upon the caskets there, 
And so did mine too, as the matter falls ; 
For wooing here until I sweat again, 

wishes ? Should it be * your wishes ' ? — 191. none from me = none 
aicay from me (since you have enough yourselves) [Rolfe] ? none distinct 
from me and my wishes [Hanmer] ? none that I shall lose, if you gain it 
[Johnson] ? none differently /rom me; none which I do not wish you [Ab- 
bott, 158, Furness] ? none beyond what I wish you [Staunton] ? Being all- 
sufficient to each other, you cannot wish to deprive me of any joy to add 
to your own [Clark and Wright, and Hudson] ? — Is it likely that the idea 
of f/rudginf/, or deprivation, is in Gratiano's mind? — 195. so thou = if 
tlioVi? provided that thou? ' so I lose none ' {i.e., if I lose none). Macbeth, 
II, i, 26. "So {i.e., on condition that) truth be in the field, we do injuri- 
ously, by licensing and prohibiting, to misdoubt her strength." Milton's 
Areopagitica. — " 'So' is used witli the future and subjunctive to denote 
' provided that.' " Abbott, \^^. — 197. s\*^ift. Adjectives are constantly used 
as adverbs in Shakespeare; as 'easy' for 'easily,' 'free' for 'freely.' 
Macbeth, II, i, 19; iii, 119; 'exc6llent' for 'excellently.' Hamlet, 111, n, 
89. — Abbott,!. — 199, intermission. Five syllables or four? Staunton 
would put a period after ' intermission.' — for intermission = for pastime 
[Staunton] ? to fill up the time ? because intermission {i.e., delay) ? The 
folios have a comma after the first 'lov'd,' and after 'intermission,' with 
no other punctuation-marks. Theobald struck out the latter comma, and 
put a longer j)ause after the second ' lov'd.' Hudson says, " The logic in /or 
is not very evident." Suppose we interpret thus : My eyes and my heart 
move as swiftly as yours ; because intermission (Lat. intermissio) or delay 
no more characterizes me than you. — Staunton interprets line 200 thus : I 
owe my wife as much to you as to my own efforts. — Lat. inter, between; 
mittere, to let go, to send; intermittere, to send apart, interrupt; leave off, 
cease; intermissio, interruption, pause, cessation. In Macbeth, TV, iii, 
232, ' intermission' evidently means delay. — 201. caskets. The first 
quarto has casket. Better ? — 203. sweat. Shakespeare largely omits the 



SCENE II.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. Ill 

And sweariDg till my very roof was dry 

With oaths of love, at last, if promise last, 205 

I got a promise of this fair one here 

To have her love, provided that your fortune 

Achiev'd her mistress. 

Portia. Is this true, Nerissa? 

Nerissa. Madam, it is, so you stand pleas'd withal. 

Basscmio. And do you, Gratiano, mean good faith? 2lC 

Gratiano. Yes, faith, my lord. 

Bassanio. Our feast shall be much honor'd in your marriage. 

Gratiano. But who comes here? Lorenzo and his infidel? 
What ! and my old Venetian friend, Salerio? 

Enter Lorenzo, Jessica, and Salerio, a messenger 
from Venice. 

Bassanio. Lorenzo and Salerio, welcome hither ; 215 

If that the youth of my new interest here 
Have power to bid you welcome. — By your leave, 
I bid my very friends and countrymen. 
Sweet Portia, welcome. 

Portia. So do I, my lord : 

They are entirely welcome. 220 

Lorenzo. I thank your honor. — For my part, my lord, 
My purpose was not to have seen you here ; 
But meeting with Salerio by the way, 
He did entreat me, past all saying nay. 
To come with him along. 

Salerio. I did, my lord ; 225 

And I have reason for it. Signior Antonio 
Commends him to you. \_Gives Bassanio a letter. 

-ed in past t. and p. p., if the root ends in t or d. Abbott, 341. — 204. Is 
tliis vigorous wooing in keeping with his character? — 208. aclnev'd = 
obtained, secured? The Lat. caput, towards tlie end of the Empire, and in 
Merovingian times, took the sense of ' an end,' whence the phrase ad caput 
venire, in the sense of ' to come to an end.' Veiiire ad caput naturally 
produced the French phrase, venir a chef {caput =^ chef) . Fr.achever = 
venir a chef, to end, finish. Brachet. — 212. shall. A resolve? or mere 
prediction? 11, v, 51; I, i, 116. Abbott, 317. "Mark you his absolute 
' shall,' " Goriolanus, III, i, 90. — 216. that. II, vi, 54. — 217. welcome. 
Why is no word of welcome extended to Jessica? — 218. very = true, gen- 
uine? So in Romeo and Juliet, III, i, 107; Tempest, II, ii, 95; Genesis, 
xxvii, 21, " Whether thou be my very son Esau, or not " ; John, vii, 26, 
" this is the very Christ." From v^war, to believe; Zend, var, to believe ; 
Lat. verus, credible; Old Fr. verai, later vrai, true; Mid. Eng. verrai, 
verrei, true, real. Skeat. — 227. him = Lorenzo ? Antonio? 'Him' for 



112 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [aCT III. 

Bassanio. Ere I ope his letter, 

I pray you, tell me how my good friend doth. 

Salerio. Not sick, my lord, unless it be in mind ; 
Nor well, unless in mind : his letter there 230 

Will show you his estate. 

Gratiano. Nerissa, cheer yon stranger ; bid her welcome. 
Your hand, Salerio : what 's the news from Venice? 
How doth that royal merchant, good Antonio ? 
I know he will be glad of our success ; 235 

We are the Jasons, we have won the fleece. 

Salerio. I would you had won the fleece that he hath lost ! 

Portia. There are some shrewd contents in yon same paper, 
That steals the color from Bassanio's cheek : 
Some dear friend dead ; else nothing in the world 240 

Could turn so much the constitution 
Of any constant man. W^hat, worse and worse? — 
With leave, Bassanio ; I am half yourself. 
And I must freely have the half of anything 

'himself is common in Elizabethan writers. So 'her,' 'them,' 'it,' for 
' herself,' 'themselves,' 'itself.' Abbott, 223.-228. doth and dost are the 
established forms for the auxiliary ; doeth and docst in other cases. In old 
writers we find the former used for the latter, as here. Eolfe. — 231. estate 
= state, condition? property, possessions? As You Like It, I, ii, 12; All's 
Well, II, i, 119 ; " Who remembered us in our low estate," Psalms, cxxxvi, 
23 ; " For he hath regai'ded the low estate of his hand maiden," Luke, \, 48. 
State and estate were somewhat interchanged, state being a later spelling. 
Line 254. — From v/sta, to stand; Gr. l-tTTa-vai^ histanai; Lat. stare, to 
stand; 0\di¥v. estat; Mid. Eng.stoi, estate, case. — 234. royal. Indicative 
of character? rank? or — ? See on IV, i, 29.-235. success = good for- 
tune? result? Often in Shakespeare the word means simply issue, result, 
whether good or ill; as in Julius Ciesar, V, iii, 65, 66. — Lat. sub, under; 
cedere, to go; succedere, to go beneath, follow after; successus, result, 
event; Fr. succeder, to succeed; sucees, success. — 236. won the fleece. 

I, i, 170, 171, 172. There appears to have been a translation of " The story 
of Jason, how he gotte the golden fleece," etc., " out of Laten into Englishe, 
by Nicholas Whyte," in 1565. Steevens. — Scan line 237: "you had " = 
you'd? — 238. shrewd = sharp, biting, hence painful [Hudson] ? — II, vi, 
52. See on shreiodly in our edition of Hamlet, I, iv, 1. In Julius Csesar, 

II, i, 158, a shreiod contriver =^ •axs. accursed or mischievous contriver. — 
239. steals. The [white of the) paper steals the color from Bassanio's 
cheek ? Pope changed steals to steal, and Hudson follows him. Wisely ? — 
Even if we refer steals to 'contents,' yet, as Abbott, 247, remarks, 'the 
relative frequently takes a singular verb, though the antecedent be plural. 
See note on 262.-241. constitution. Scan! See line 199. — What is 
Bassanio's constitutional temper? — 242. constant = firm ? steadfast? 
self-possessed? — " Who was so firm, so constant, that this coil would not 
infecthis reason ? " Tempest, I, ii, 207. Lat. con, together ; stare, to stand ; 
const are, to stand together. As if all parts of a structure stood compact in 
fulfilment of one intent? — 244. freely. Pope omitted this, to reduce the 
line. " As this line stands here in the folio, it contains unquestionably, tg 



SCENE II.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 113 

That this same paper brings you. 

Bassanio. O sweet Portia, 245 

Here are a few of the iinpleasant'st words 
That ever blotted paper ! Gentle lady, 
When I did first impart my love to you, 
I freely told you, all the wealth I had 

Ran in my veins — I was a gentleman : 250 

And then 1 told you true ; and yet, dear lady. 
Rating myseU at nothing, you shall see 
How much 1 was a braggart. When I told you 
My state was nothing, I should then have told you 
That I was worse than nothing ; for indeed 255 

I have engag'd myself to a dear friend, 
Engag'd my friend to his mere enemy, 
To feed, my means. Here is a letter, lady ; 
The paper as the body of my friend. 

And every word in it a gaping wound, 260 

Issuing life-blood. — But is it true, Salerio? 
Hath all his ventures fail'd? What, not one hit? 
From Tripolis, from Mexico, and England, 
From Lisbon, Barbary, and India, 
And not one vessel scape the dreadful touch 265 

the eye of flesh, twelve syllables, and is therefore (I turn pale while I write 
it) an Alexandrine." Furness. What, man, courage yet! Abbott, 494, shall 
jam it into a pentameter, and all may yet be well! — Well? — 252. brag- 
gart. For the -art in ' braggart,' see our Masterpieces in English Litera- 
ture, note on loizard, p. 244. — 256. engag'd ^ involved, made liable? — 
Lat. in, Fr. en; Low 'La.t. vadiiim, a pledge; vadiare (found in Germanic 
codes) , to pledge ; vadiare = vadjare, became Fr. f/ager, to gage, wager, 
hire ; gage, a pledge, a pawn. Bracket. — 257. mere = entire ? thorough? 
absolute ? unqualified ? Teinjyest, I, i, 51, " We are merely (i.e., absolutely) 
cheated of our lives by this drunkard." So, as Rolfe points out, ' merely,' 
in Bacon's 58tli Essay, = entirely, where Montague and even Whately 
have mistaken the meaning. — The original sense is 'bright.' Compare 
Sans, marichi, a ray of light. From \/mar, to gleam, whence Gr. ixapixdcpeLv, 
marmairein, to glitter; Lat. marmor, marble; meriis, pure, unmixed, 
especially used of wine; Eng. mere, pure, simple, absolute. — 262. Hath. 
So all the early editions ; but modern editors, with hardly an exception, 
have substituted have. As Shakespeare undoubtedly wrote hath, we restore 
it. There were, as Abbott, 332, shows, three forms of the plural in Early 
English; the Northern in -es, the Midland in -en, the Southern in -eth. 
See also Abbott, 334, 335. — hit = succeeded ? success ? We still say ' make 
a hit,' or 'hit the mark,' to indicate success. — 263. Mexico. Had the 
Venetians any trade with Mexico? Elze says no. — 265. scape is "a 
mutilated form, of ' escape ' in common use." Lat. ex, out of; cappa, cape 
or cloak. To ' escape ' is to ex-cape oneself, to slip out of one's cape and 
get away; Low Lat. escapium, flight; Old Fr. escaper, to escape; Fr. 
echapper; Mid. Eng. escapen. Bracket. — Macbeth, III, iv, 20. — 265. touch* 



114 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act III. 

Of merchant-marriug rocks ? 

Salerio. Not one, my lord. 

Besides, it should appear, that if he had 
The present money to discharge the Jew, 
He would not take it. Never did I know 
A creature, that did bear the shape of man, 270 

So keen and greedy to confound a man. 
He plies the Duke at morniug and at night. 
And doth imj3each the freedom of the state, 
If they den}" him justice. Twenty merchants. 
The Duke himself, and the magnificoes 275 

Of greatest port, have all persuaded with him ; 
But none can drive him from the envious plea 
Of forfeiture, of justice, and his bond. 

Jessica. When I was with him I have heard him swear 
To Tubal and to Chus, his countrj'men, 280 

That he would rather have Antonio's flesh 
Than twenty times the value of the sum 
That he did owe him ; and I know, my lord, 
If law, authoritj^, and power deny not, 

I, i, 32.-267. should = would ? ought to ? Past tense of shall ? Abbott, 
322, 323, 324, 325, etc. " The Elizabethan use of should is to me always 
difficult to analyze." Fiirness. — 268. discliarge. In Comedy of Errors, 
IV, iv, 117, " I will discharge {i.e., pay) thee." — 271. confound = destroy. 
Lat. con, together; fundere, to pour; confundere, to pour out together; to 
mingle, perplex, overwhelm. The word used to be much stronger tlian 
now. "Let me never be confounded," Te Deum. Macbeth, II, ii, 11. — 
273. impeach the freedom, etc. = denies that strangers have equal 
rights in Venice [Clark and Wright, Rolfe, etc.] ? So most of the com- 
mentators; but the threat of Shylock in IV, i, 38, "If you deny me, let 
the danger light Upon your charter and your city's freedom," suggests a 
far more serious danger than the possible loss of trade consequent upon a 
denial of equal rights to Hebrew ' strangers.' Is the threat, then, to take 
away the city's charter, as if its autonomy depended, like that of London, 
upon a charter from a higher power ? — 275. magnificoes = Venetian 
noblemen? Lat. mar/ni-, for magno-, crude form of magnvs, great; fie-, 
iovfac-, base of facer e, to do. Lit. one who does great things? — 276. port 
= external bearing? weight, importance? — From s/par, to bring over; 
Lat. 2)ortare, Fr. jyoi'ter, to carry; Fr. and Mid. Eng. j^ort, carriage, be- 
havior, demeanor. See on I, i, 124. — persuaded = argued [Abbott, 194] ? 
advised? used persuasion? — Tivo Gentlemen of Verona, I, i, 1. — with. 
Not elsewhere joined by Shakespeare to persuade. — 277. envious := cove- 
tous? emulovfs? grudging? malicious? Lat. in, against; videre, to see, 
to look; invidia, looking against or with evil eye ; Fr. envie. In IV, i, 10, 
121, 'envy' appears to mean malice. So in Mark, xv, 10; Acts, xvii, 5; 
Ro7n. and Jul., Ill, i, 165; etc. — 280. Chus. Pronounced cuss'i The ch 
in Latin, Greek, and Hebrew names (except Rachel) sounds like k ? For 
this Chus (Cush?) and Tubal, see Genesis, x, 2, 6. — Is Jessica's telling 
this about her father creditable to her? — 284. deny = refuse? forbid? 



SCENE II.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 115 

It will go liard with poor Antonio. 285 

Portia. Is it your dear friend that is thus in trouble? 

Bassanio. The dearest friend to me, the kindest man, 
The best-condition'd and unwearied spirit 
In doing courtesies ; and one in whom 

The ancient Roman honor more appears 290 

Than any that draws breath in Italy. 

Portia. What sum owes he the Jew? 

Bassanio. For me, three thousand ducats. 

Portia. What, no more ? 

Pay him six thousand, and deface the bond ; 
Double six thousand, and then treble that, 295 

Before a friend of this description 
Shall lose a hair through Bassanio's fault. 
First go with me to church and call me wife, 
And then away to Venice to your friend ; 
For never shall you lie by Portia's side 300 

With an unquiet soul. You shall have gold 
To pay the petty debt twenty times over : 
When it is paid, bring your true friend along. 
My maid Nerissa and myself, mean time. 
Will live as maids and widows. Come, away ! 305 

For you shall hence upon your wedding-day. 
Bid your friends welcome, show a merry cheer : 



II, ii, 161. Lat. de, fully; nec/are, to say no; from ne, not; aiere, Gr. 
ijut, emi, I say ; n/agh, to say, speak, affirm ; Fr. denier, to deny, refuse. 
— 288. unwearied = most unwearied? 11,1,46. Supply ' most ' ? In 
Middleton's Witch we read, " Call me the horrid' st and unhalloio'd thing." 
"In like manner -?v is sometimes omitted in the second of a pair of ad- 
verbs" Rolfe. — i, ii, 112. — 291. than represents absorption of in and 
= tlian iu. Allen. See on line 161. — 293. For me. Implying that he 
may be otherwise indebted to Shylock ? — 294. deface. From Fr. defairc, 
whence the law term defeasance. Lat. dis-, Old Fr. des-, apart, away; Lat. 
facere, to make; fades, a face; Fr. defaire (from desfaire, desfacer, 'to 
efface, deface, raze ') . — 295. " Portia's offer of 36,000 ducats, placed about 
$55,000, or, according to present values, $385,000, at Bassanio's disposal." 
White (1859). — "In Shakespeare's times 60,000 ducats were equal to at 
least $1,000,000 now." TF/i«^e (1885). — 296. description. Syllables? Line 
199 above. — 297. hair through. "Hair is here used as a dissyllable. ' 
Malone. " Through is here pronounced as it is frequently written, as a dis- 
syllable. Clark and Wright. Choose! II, vii, 42. — Steevens prints ' thor- 
ough.'— 298. church. Why not temijle here? II, i, 44. — 307. cheer = 
look, countenance? cheerfulness? mien? — Gr. Kapa, Tcara, the head; Low 
Lat. cara, Old Fr. chere, Mid. Eng. chere, Ital. ciera or cera, face, counte- 
nance.— ir2dsi67nmer NiqhVs Dream, III, i, 96, 'pale of cheer,' i.e., face. 
So in Spenser's Faerie Qiieene, I, i, ii, 8, "But of his cheere did seeme 
too solemne sad"; 'drooping cheer,' Paradise Lost, vi, 496. — 308. dear 



116 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [aCT III. 

Since you are dear bought, I will love 3^ou dear. — 
But let me hear the letter of your friend. 

Bassanio [Reads]. Siveet Bassanio, 7ny shi2JS have all mis- 
carried., my creditors grow cruel., my estate is very low, my bond 
to the Jew is forfeit; and since i7i paying it, it is impossible I 
should live, all debts are cleared between you and I. — If I might 
see you at my death! — notwithstanding, use your pleasure: 
if your love do not persuade you to come, let not my letter. 315 

Portia. O love, dispatch all business, and be gone ! 

Bassanio. Since I have your good leave to go away, 
I will make haste ; but, till I come again, 

No bed shall e'er be guilty of my stay, 

Nor rest be interposer 'twixt us twain. \_Exeunt. 320 



Scene III. Venice. A street. 
Enter Shylock, Salarino, Antonio, and Jailer. 

Shylock. Jailer, look to him : tell not me of mercy. — 
This is the fool that lends out money gratis. — 
Jailer, look to him. 

Antonio. Hear me yet, good Shylock. 

Shylock. I '11 have my bond; speak not against my bond : 

bought. Adjective for adverb ? Abbott, 1. See IV, i, 05. — 312. is forfeit. 
IV, i, 221, 356; Measure for Measure, 11, ii, 73, etc., "Why all the souls that 
were were forfeit once. And he, that might the vantage best have took, 
Found out the remedy." — "If the root of a verb (in Early English) end in 
-d or -t doubled or jjreceded by another consonant, the -de or -te of the past 
tense, and -d or -t of the past participle, are omitted." Morris's Specimens 
of Early Eru/lish, xxxv. — "Some verbs ending in -te, -t, and -d, on 
account of their already resembling participles in their terminations, do 
not add -ed in the participle." Abbott, 342. See note on sioeat, 203. — 
'La,t.foris, out of doors; facere, to do; Low Lsit.forisfacere, to transgress; 
literally ' to act beyond ' ; Fr. forfait, forfeited, f r. forfaire, to forfeit. 
Brachet, and Skeat. — 313. yovi and I. Here we follow Charles Kemble's 
punctuation, approved by Harness, 1830. — Inflections disregarded often 
in Shakespeare's age? ' 'Tween you and I' seems to have been a regular 
Elizabethan idiom. Abbott, 205-216. — Pope changed I to me. Well? — 
May a dramatist properly make his characters speak ungrammatically ? — 
319. no bed, etc. Did he keep this promise? IV, i, 445^48.-320. Nor. 
Roberts's quayto reads no. Prefer? — Your comments on this scene? — 
Portia's home ? — Lesson of life in the legend of the leaden casket ? Devel- 
opment of character? Progress of the story? — Did Shylock originate 
the rumors of Antonio's losses? 

Scene III. Enter Shylock, etc. — Until 1800 it is said that incar- 
cerated debtors were allowed to walk out with an ofiicer for the purpose 
of effecting some settlement with creditors. — 2. lends. The quartos have 



SCENE III.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 117 

I have sworn an oath that I will have my bond. 5 

Thou call'dst me dog before thou hadst a cause ; 

But, since I am a dog, beware my fangs. 

The duke shall grant me justice. — I do wonder, 

Thou naughty jailer, that thou art so fond 

To come abroad with him at his request. 10 

Antonio. I pray thee, hear me speak. 

Shylock. I '11 have my bond ; I will not hear thee speak : 
I '11 have my bond ; and therefore speak no more. 
I '11 not be made a soft and dull-eyed fool. 
To shake the head, relent, and sigh, and yield 15 

To Christian intercessors. Follow not ; 
I '11 have no speaking : I will have my bond. [_Exit. 

Salarino. It is the most impenetrable cur 
That ever kept with men. 

Antonio. Let him alone : 

I '11 follow him no more with bootless prayers. 20 

He seeks my life ; his reason well I know : 
I oft deliver' d from his forfeitures 
Many that have at times made moan to me ; 
Therefore he hates me. 

Salarino. I am sure the duke 

Will never grant this forfeiture to hold. 25 



lent. Preference? — gratis. I, iii, 38.-7. fangs. A singularly expres- 
sive word. A. S. fangan U'em/, gefangen), to seize; Dutch vanqe)i, to 
catch; A. S.fang, a taking; Ger. fang, a catch, a fang, a talon; Icel. fd, 
to seize.— 9. naughty. See on 'naughty,' line 18, and on 'confound,' 
hue 271, preceding scene. Proverbs, vi, 12; James, i, 21. A. S. nd, no, 
not; uriht, a whit, a thing; naioiht, contracted often to ndht, nothing at 
all; adj. naught, utterly worthless. V, i, 91. — fond. II, ix, 2(). — Shy- 
lock threatens the jailer with an action for ' escape.' Lord Campbell. — 
10. to come. " In relatival constructions (e.r/., so . . . as, so . . . that, etc.), 
one of the two (terms) can be omitted." Abbott, 281. — li. dull-eyed =^ 
tear-dimmed? wanting in perception [Clark and Wright] ? — " Though I 
he dull-eyed, I see through this juggling." Elder Brother, hy Fletcher 
(died 1025). Tears are repeatedly characterized as foolish in Shakespeare. 
See on II, iii, 11. In line 2 kindness is folly. — 19. kept =-- dwelt [Singer] ? 
So m Measure for Pleasure, III, i, 10, 'this habitation where thou keepst.' 

— "The word is still used in this sense at Cambridge." Stamiton, Clark 
and Wright. It is occasionally heard in New England in the same sense. 

— A. S. cepan, orig. to traffic, sell, h(3nce also to seek after, store up, retain, 
keep; akin to Lat. caupo, a huckster; Gr. /caTryjAog, kapelos, a peddler. 
Skeat. How originated the sense of dicell? — 2'd. moan. See I, i, 126.— 
24, 25. The duke will never, etc. All this has a strong odor of West- 
minster Hall. Lord Campbell. — g^rtint. Lat. credere, to trust; Late 
La,t. credent are, creantare, to guarantee; Old Fr. qraanter, qraunter, or 
craanter, creanter, to caution, assure, guarantee; MXdi.^iig.'graunten, to 



118 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act III. 

Antonio. The duke cannot deny the course of law ; 
For the commodity that strangers have 
With us in Venice, if it be denied, 
Will much impeach the justice of the state ; 
Since that the trade and profit of the city 30 

Consisteth of all nations. Therefore go : 
These griefs and losses have so bated me. 
That I shall hardly spare a pound of flesh 
To-morrow to my blood}^ creditor. — 

Well, jailer, on. — Pray God, Bassanio come 35 

To see me pay his debt, and then I care not ! [^Exeunt. 

Scene IV. Belmont. A room in Portia's house. 
Enter Portia, Nerissa, Lorenzo, Jessica, and Baltjiasar. 

Lorenzo. Madam, although I speak it in your presence. 
You have a noble and a true conceit 
Of godlike amit}' ; which appears most strongly 
In bearing thus the absence of your lord. 
But if you knew to whom you show this honor, 5 

How true a gentleman you send relief. 
How dear a lover of my lord your husband, 
I know you would be prouder of the work 
Than customary bounty can enforce you. 

Portia. I never did repent for doing good, 10 

allow, permit, bestow. Skeot. Abbott, 354. — 20. deny, etc. Ill, ii, 284. 

— Does this reasouiug show Antonio to he a good citizen? — 27. for tlie 
commodity = hecanse of the commercial intercourse [Hudson] ? for if 
the advantages [Rolfe] ? for the usual facilities [Clark and Wright] ? — 
28. if it ^ if the course of law [Capell] ? if the commodity [Malone] ? 
Capell, Knight, Hudson, and some others place a colon after Venice. 
Preferable sense and punctuation ? — In the History of Itahi by W. Thomas 
(15()7), referred to by Malone, there is a sectiou on the liberty of strangers 
at Venice, ending, " whyche undoubtedly is one principall cause that 
draweth so many straungers thither." — 29. will. Capell (170G) changed 
this to 'Twill. So Eccles, Knight, Staunton, Keightley, and Hudson. — 
30. since that. Abbott, 287.-^32. bated. Said "with a grim smile? — 
I, iii, 114. — 35, Pray. "When there can be no doubt what is the nomi- 
native, it is sometimes omitted." Abbott, 399. — Value of this scene? 
Questions suggested l)y it? Was it worth while to bring so important 
characters in to say so little? Imprisonment for debt? 

Scene IV. 2. conceit = conception ? Much Ado, II, i, 266. — Lat. co??, 
together ; capcre, to take ; concipere, to conceive ; conceptus, Old Fr. con- 
cept, eonceipt, covceit. — 3. amity. Scan ! Abbott, 467. Amity between 
whom ? — 6. gentleman. Ellij^sis ? Present usage as to to after ' send ' ? 

— 7. lover. Jvlivs CsRsar, III, ii, 13, " Romans, countrymen, and lovers " ; 
Psalms, xxxviii, 11. Formerly used of either sex, and even now Ave speak 
of a 'imir of lovers.' — 9. enforce you, incline you to be [Eccles] ? con- 



SCENE IV.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 119 

Nor shall not now ; for in companions 

Tliat do converse and waste the time together, 

Whose souls do bear an equal yoke of love, 

There must be needs a like proportion 

Of lineaments, of manners, and of spirit; 15 

Which makes me think that this Antonio, 

Being the bosom lover of m}- lord. 

Must needs be hke my lord. If it be so, 

How little is the cost I have bestow'd 

In purcliasing the semblance of my soul 20 

From out the state of hellish cruelty ! 

This comes too near the praising of myself ; 

Therefore no more of it : hear other things. 

Lorenzo, I commit into your hands 

The husbandry and manage of my house 25 

Until my lord's return : for mine own part, 

I have toward heaven breath'd a secret vow 

To live in prayer and contemplation, 

OnW attended by Nerissa here. 

Until her husband and my lord's return. 30 

There is a monastery two miles off. 

And there will we abide. I do desire you 

Not to deny this imposition. 

The which my love and some necessity 

Now lays upon you. 

strain you to be [Clark and Wright] ? — 11. nor shall not. I, ii, 23 ; IV, 
i, 54. — companions. (Lat. con, together, pants, bread ; hence companion 
= messmate). Once a contemptuous word, like 'fellow'; but here? — 
12. waste= pass, consume, spend [Halliwell] ? " Help waste a sullen day." 
Milton's sonnet to Mr. Lawrence. — Waste is etymologically from Lat. 
was^ws, desert, desolate. See ?)as/?/, II, vii, 41. — 14. be needs. II, iv, 29; 
I, ii, 11(3. — 21. cruelty. So the folios and second quarto. The first quarto 
has misery. Better of the two? — 22. praising of myself. How so? 
What is the semblance of her soul ? — See Sonnet xxxix. — 25. husbandry = 
care [Meiklejohu] ? stewardship [Clark and Wright, Rolfe, etc.] ? ordering 
[Hudson] ? — Icel. hiisbondi, master of a house ; from hiis, a house, buandi, 
dwelling, from bua, to abide, dwell; A. S. husboiida. The old sense of 
'husband' is master of a house. Skeat. Macbeth, II, i, 4; Tempest, I, ii, 
70. — 28. contemplation. How many syllables? Abbott, 479. See on 
ocean, I, i, 8; complexion, II, i, 1. — 30. husband. Ellipsis? Abbott, 397, 
notes ' tiie readiness with which a compound phrase connected by a conjunc- 
tion is regarded as one and- inseparable.' — 31. monastery. As to the 
topography, see Furness. — 33. deny this imposition = refuse this task 
imposed ? — Lat. in, on ; ponere, to put, lay ; impositio, a laying on. Should 
we infer anything unfavorable to morals or kindly conduct from the change 
of meaning which this word has undergone? — For deny, see III, ii, 284. — 
Scan!— 34. the which. I, iii, 4.— 35. lays. "The words 'and some 



120 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act hi, 

Lorenzo. Madam, with all my heart ; 35 

I shall obey you in all fair commands. 

Portia. My people do already know my mind, 
And will acknowledge you and Jessica 
In place of Lord Bassanio and myself." 
So fare you well, till we shall meet again. 40 

Lorenzo. Fair thoughts and happy hours attend on yon ! 

Jessica. I wish yonr lad3^ship all heart's content. 

Portia. I thank you for your wish and am well pleas'd 
To wish it back on you : fare you well, Jessica. 

\_Exeunt Jessica and Lorenzo. 
Now, Balthasar, 45 

As I have ever found thee honest-true. 
So let me find thee still. Take this same letter, 
And use thou all the endeavor of a man 
In speed to Padua : see thou render this 
Into my cousin's hand. Doctor Bellario ; 50 

And, look, what notes and garments he doth give thee. 
Bring them, I pray thee, with imagin'd speed 
Unto the tranect, to the common ferry 
Which trades to Venice. Waste no time in words. 
But get thee gone : I shall be there before thee. 55 

Balthasar. Madam, I go with all convenient speed. \_Exit. 

Portia. Come on, Nerissa ; I have work in hand 
That 3^ou yet know not of. We '11 see our husbands 
Before they think of us. 

necessity' are almost pareuthetical." Clark and Wright. May lays be 
an old plural? See on hath, III, ii, 262. — 46. thee. Spoken to a servant. 
Difference of usage between thou and yon ? How does Nerissa address 
Portia? Portia, Nerissa? — 49. Padua. The old copies have Mantua. 
A slip of the pen ? Theobald made the change. See IV, i, 104, 114. Padua, 
too, was famous for its jurists and its university, of wliich the students at 
one time numbered 18,000. — From 1591 to 1594, twenty-five English students 
were matriculated there ; among them was a son of the famous author 
Sackville. Elze. — ^50. cousin's = A;ms»i«>t's. See note in our edition of 
Hamlet, on cousin, I, ii, 64; also our edition of Macbeth, I, iii, 127. — 
52. imagin'd = of imagination? Henry V, III, i, Prologue, line 1, "Thus 
with imagin'd wing our swift scene flies." So 'swift as meditation,' in 
Hamlet, \, v, 29, oO. — 53. tranect. Shakespeare may have coined this 
from Lat. trans, across, and nectere, to bind, tie, fasten. Most editors 
think with Rowe that Shakespeare wrote 'traject' (like Fr. trajet. Old 
Fr. traject, jjassage, ferry, from Lat. trajectus, thrown across, a pas- 
sage over). The Italian word is trayhetto, and Coryat (1611) says there 
are 13 in Venice. Knight thinks the tranect was the ferry tow-boat. The 
Cowden-Clarkes derive 'tranect' from Ital. tranare or traiaare, to drag 
or draw, and think that the ferry-boat was drawn through the water. — 
56. convenient. See on II, viii, 45. — 59. of us = of seeing us ? about us ? — 



SCENE IV.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 121 

Nerissa. Shall they see us ? 

Portia. They shall, Nerissa ; but in such a habit, 60 

That they shall think we are accomplished 
With that we lack. I '11 hold thee any wager, 
When we are both accoutred like young men, 
I '11 prove the prettier fellow of the two, 
And wear my dagger with the braver grace, 65 

And speak between the change of man and boy 
With a reed voice, and turn two mincing steps 
Into a manly stride, and speak of frays 
Like a fine bragging youth ; and tell quaint lies, 
How honorable ladies sought my love, 70 

Which I denying, they fell sick and died ; 
I could not do withal \ then I '11 repent. 
And wish, for all that, that I had not kill'd them. 
And twenty of these puny lies I '11 tell. 

That men shall swear I have discontinued school 75 

Above a twelvemonth. I have within my mind 
A thousand raw tricks of these bragging Jacks, 
Which I will practise. 
But come, I '11 tell thee all — my whole device — 

61. accomplisli'd = furnished ? — Lat. ad, to ; complere, to complete; Fr. 
accomplir, to complete. The -ish is from Fr. -iss, imitated from Lat. -esc- 
(in inchoative verhs, as ./?or-esc-o), which in French gives certain forms as 
if its infinitive were fleurissir instead oiflevrir. Skeat. — (jo. accoutred. 
The second quarto has apparreld. As good ? — 67. reed = shrill ? piping ? 
as when the voice is changing to a manly voice ? — mincing. Lat mm-or, 
less. Mince is formed with suffix s, implying 'to make,' from the ad- 
jective mill, small, from A. S. minsicm, to become small. 8kcat. — li\ 
Milton's Comns, 964, mincing = neatly stepping short steps.— 69. quaint. 
Note on quaintly, II, iv, 6.-72. I could not do withal = I could not 
help it [Rolfe, Clark and Wright, Hudson] ? I had no use for them, did 
not care for them? " Beare witness, my masters, if hee dye of a surfet, I 
cannot doo withall, it is his owne seeking, not mine." Nash (1596), quoted 
byDyce. IV, i, •J03. — See our note on luithal in Macbeth, I, iii, 57. Is 
' withal ' ever found elsewhere than at the end of a sentence ? — 75. that 
men. Ellipsis? See note on Ho come,' III, iii, 10; Abbott, 283; our edi- 
tion of Macbeth, I, ii, 58.-77. raw. A. S. hredio, Dan. raa, alhed to Lat. 
crudus, raw, and Sans, krura, sore, cruel, hard. — .4s You Like It, III, u, 
66. —Jacks. Much Ado, I, i, 162, and V, i, 91 ; Tempest, IV, i, 198. ' Jack 
appears to be a nickname of 'John.' "I know not how it has happened 
that, in the principal modern languages, John, or its equivalent, is a name 
of contempt, or at least of slight." Tyriohitt. Perhaps because so many 
of them were contemptible, or ' of no account ' ! — See Jack Straw, Jack o' 
lantern, Jack-ketch, jackanapes, jack-at-all-trades, jackass, Fr. jacquerie, 
etc. — " It really answers to Jacob, from Lat. Jacobus, Gr. la/cw^o?, lakobos, 
from Heb. Yd aqdb, Heb. root dqab, to seize by the heel, supplant; " Ital. 
Jacopo, Jachimo, Giacomo ; Fr. Jacques: ^i^Sin. Diego, Ja(/o ; Ger. Jakob. 
— 79. all — my whole. Pleonasm? The same phrase occurs in Henry 



122 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act ill. 

When I am in m}^ coach, which stays for us 80 

At the park gate ; and therefore haste away, 

For we must measure twenty miles to-day. [^Exeunt. 



Scene V. The Same. A Garden. 
Enter Launcelot and Jessica. 

Launcelot. Yes, truly ; for, look you, the sins of the father 
are to be laid upon the children : therefore, I promise 3'on, 
I fear you. I was always plain with you, and so now I 
speak my agitation of the matter : therefore be of good 
cheer, for truly I think you are damned. There is but one 
hope in it that can do you any good. 6 

Jessica. And what hope is that, I pray thee ? 

Launcelot. Marry, you may partly hope that you are not 
the Jew's daughter. 

Jessica. So the sins of my mother should be visited upon me. 

Launcelot. Truly then I fear you are damned both by father 
and mother : thus when I shun Scylla, your father, I fall 
into Chary bdis, your mother : well, 3'ou are gone both ways. 

Jessica. I shall be saved by my husband ; he hath made 
me a Christian. 15 

Launcelot. Truly, the more to blame he : we were Chris- 
tians enow before ; e'en as many as could well live, one by 

VIII, I, i, 12; 1 Henry VI, I, i, 126. — 82. twenty miles. Approximate 
distance between Venice and Belmont? See Furness, p. 177. — Use of this 
scene? Portia's plan? Her character in this new light? Is she serious 
in what she proposes? Shakespeare's heroines in men's apparel? 

Scene V. 3. fear = fear for ? Line 24. See on III, ii, 29 ; Richard III, 
I, i, 137; Ah'bott,200. — ^. agitation = cogitation [Eccles] ? anxiety? — 12, 
13. Scylla . . . Charybdis, etc. "Incidis in Scyllam, cupiens vitare 
Charybdin," you fall into Scylla while desirous of escaping Charybdis. 
Alexandrcis, by Gaultier, a 'modern Latin j)oet' of the 13th century. — In 
the Straits of Messina, on the Italian side, was Scylla, once a beautiful 
maiden, but changed to a monster with twelve feet and six long necks, ' and 
on each a hideous head, and therein three rows of teeth set thick and close, 
full of black death.' On the Sicilian side of the straits was Charybdis, a 
dreadfiil whirli)ool, that ' thrice a day sucks down the black water, and 
thrice a day spouts it forth.' Homer's Odyssey, xii, 73-110. See Class. Diet. 
As Ulysses found out, it was next to impossible to sail through and effectu- 
ally shun both dangers. The proverb is traced to St. Augustine (354-430), 
— Observe Launcelot's classical learning ! — 14. saved. Allusion to " The 
unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband," 1 Corinthians, vii, 14? — 
17. enow. Plural form of enonyh. From \/nak, to attain, reach ; whence 
Sans, nai;, to attain, Lat. nancisci, to acquire. A. S. gendh, yenog, enough; 



SCENE v.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 123 

another. This making of Christians will raise the price of 
hoo-s : if we grow all to be pork-eaters, we shall not shortly 
have a rasher on the coals for money. 20 

Enter Lorenzo. 

Jessica, I'll tell my husband, Launcelot, what you say: 
here he comes. 

Lorenzo. I shall grow jealous of you shortly, Launcelot. 

Jessica. Nay, you need not fear us, Lorenzo ; Launcelot 
9,nd I are out. He tells me flatly, there is no mercy for me 
in heaven, because I am a Jew's daughter : and he says, you 
^re no good member of the commonwealth, for in converting 
Jews to Christians you raise the price of pork. 28 

Lorenzo. I think the best grace of wit will shortly turn 
into silence, and discourse grow commendable in none only 
but parrots. — Go in, sirrah ; bid them prepare for dinner. 31 

Launcelot. That is done, sir ; they have all stomachs. 

Lorenzo. Goodly Lord, what a wit-snapper are you ! then 
bid them prepare dinner. 

Launcelot. That is done too, sir ; only, cover is the word. 

Lorenzo. Will you cover then, sir? 36 

Launcelot. Not so, sir, neither ; I know my duty. 

Lorenzo. Yet more quarrelling with occasion ! Wilt thou 
show the whole wealth of thy wit in an instant? I pray 
thee, understand a plain man in his plain meaning : go to 
thy fellows ; bid them cover the table, serve in the meat, and 
we will come in to dinner. 

Lamicelot. For the table, sir, it shall be served in ; for the 
meat, sir, it shall be covered ; for your coming in to dinner, sir, 
why, let it be as humors and conceits shall govern. \_Exit. 45 

ge.neah, it sufftces; Mid. Eng. inoh, enogh; plural inohe, inowe, ynoive, 
ynoufjh. — IV, i, 29. — In some provincial dialects enoio is still used of num- 
bers, 'e>i'oz<fy/i of quantity. Clark and Wright. — ?>h,^Q. cover. Punning? 
' Cover ' means ' to lay covers on the table,' and ' to put the hat on the head.' 
II, ii, 176, 177; ix, 43.-38. quarrelling with occasion = at odds with 
the matter in question, turning it into ridicule without reason [Schmidt] ? 
quibbling on every opportunity, taking every opportunity to make perverse 
t-eplies [Clark and Wright] ? going at odds or in discord with the occasion 
Hudson] ? — 39. sliovt^ the whole Tvealth of thy wit in an instant. 

" What things have we seen 
Done at the Mermaid ! heard words that have been 
So nimble, and so full of subtle flame, 
As if that every one from whence they came 
Had meant to jnit his whole wit in a jest, 
And had resolved to live a fool the rest 
Of his dull life." Beaumont, to Ben Jensen. 



124 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [aCT ill. 

Lorenzo. O dear discretion, how his words are suited ! 
The fool hath, planted in his memory, 
An army of good words ; and I do know 
A many fools, that stand in better place, 
Garnish'd like him, that for a tricksy word 50 

Defy the matter. How cheer'st thou, Jessica? 
And now, good sweet, say thy opinion. 
How dost thou like the Lord Bassanio's wife ? 

Jessica. Past all expressing. It is very meet 
The Lord Bassanio live an upright life ; 55 

For, having such a blessing in his lady. 
He finds the joys of heaven here on earth ; 
And if on earth he do not mean it, it 
Is reason he should never come to heaven. 
Why, if two gods should play some heavenly match, 60 

And on the wager lay two earthly women. 
And Portia one, there must be something else 
Pawn'd with the other, for the poor rude world 
Hath not her fellow. 

46. discretion = the power of separating; discrimination? — Lat. dU-, a 
part; cernere, cognate with Gr. tpiVen', hrinein, to separate, from v'skar, 
to separate; Lat. cliscretvs, pp. of discernere, to discern. Skeat. — Lorenzo 
pities discretion for the way in which it is defied. Allen. — Hamlet, 11, ii, 
453. — suited, to what? — What a series or suite of meaningless words, 
one drawing on another [Johnson] ? applied properly [M. Mason] ? good 
words connected with frivolous matter [Eccles] ? This is spoken ironically 
[Halliwell] ? tricked out, or ill-matched (with the matter) [Allen] ? — 
49. a many. We still say ' a few,' ' a great many,' etc., and Gerald Massey 
and Tennyson dare to say ' a many.' — Teutonic base managa, many from 
\/mank, nasalized form of \/mak or mag, to have power, whence Lat. maej- 
nus, great, and Eng. much; A. S. manig, msenUj, monig ; Mid. Eug. mani, 
many. Skeat. — ^e,Q II, ix, 24, 'That many.' As You Like It, I, i, 108; 
King John, IV, ii, 199. — Ger. menge, as in Goethe's, Mein Lied ertont der 
nnh'ekannten Menge, my song voice's itself to the unknown many. — Abbott, 
87. — 50. garnish'd. A. S. warnian, to beware of ; Old Fr. guarnir, garnir, 
loarnir, to avert, warn, defend, fortify. Skeat. So the original idea was 
equipment for defence ? — tricksy '= artful, smartisli [Hudson]? Teut. 
base STRiK, to stroke ; Dutch, trek, a trick. Trick does not seem to be 
much older than about 1550. Skeat.— 51. defy= renounce, forsake, give 
up [Hudson] ? set at defiance [Clark and Wright, Kolfe, etc.] ? — matter 
= meaning ? — cheer'st = f arest ? • We say, ' ' What cheer ? " — The first 
quarto has 'far'st.' Better? — HI, ii, 307. — Furness prefers the quarto.— 
52. good sweet. Same in Coriolanus, I, iii, 105 ; Merry Wives, IV, ii, 158. 
Scan ! — 58. mean it, it. So the first folio. Mean it = appreciate the 
blessing? find the joys? observe a mean in his pleasures [Capell, Corson, 
Furness] ? mean to live an upright life, as stated in line 55 [Rolfe] ? — Pope 
changed mean to ' merit,' which Hudson also adopts. But ought he to lose 
heaven, if not quite deserving of Portia? or if he does not observe the 
'golden mean'? The first quarto has 'mean it, then.'— 60. match = 
game? — 63. pawn'd. 'L2ii.pannus, cloth, rag, piece. A piece of clothing 



SCENE v.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 125 

Lorenzo. Even such a husband 

Hast thou of me as she is for a wife. 65 

Jessica. Nay, but ask my opinion too of that. 

Lorenzo. I will anon ; first, let us go to dinner. 

Jessica. Nay, let me praise you while I have a stomach. 

Lorenzo. No, pray thee, let it serve for table-talk ; 
Then, howsoe'er thou speak' st, 'mong other things 70 

I shall digest it. 

Jessica. Well, I'll set you forth. [Exeunt. 



is the readiest article to leave in pledge; Fr. pan, a pane; piece, pawn; 
skirt of a ^own, the pane of a hose, of a cloak, etc. ; Old Yv.paner, to take 
pledges, take, seize. Skeat. — Coriolanvs, III, i, 15 ; Gymbeline, I, iv, 100. 
— 65. of ine= in me. This ' of ' is ofteuest found with verhs of construc- 
tion, as "They make an ass of me," Twelfth Night, V, i, 15. See Abbott, 
X72. — 68. stomach = inclination (to praise) ? appetite for food ? An equi- 
voque ?— Gr. o-ro/aa, .s^oma, mouth; a-ro^iaxos, stoiiiachos, stom^ch. Shake- 
speare uses it for anger, 1 Henry VI, IV, i, 141? for inclination, appetite, 
or courage, Henry V, IV, iii, 35. — 70. howsoe'er. The folio has the 
inelegant ' how som ere.' — 71. set you forth. Douhle meaning ? — Could 
this scene he spared ? Its real value ? 



126 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE, [aCT IV. 



ACT IV. 

Scene I. Venice. A Court of Justice. 

Enter the Duke, the Magnificoes, Antonio, Bassanio, 
Gratiano, Salerio, and others. 

Duke. What, is Antonio here? 

Antonio. Ready, so please your grace. 

Duke. I am sorry for thee ; thou art come to answer 
A ston}' adversary, an inhuman wretch 

Uncapable of pity, void and empty 5 

From any dram of mercy. 

Antonio. . I have heard 

Your grace hath ta'en great pains to qualify 
His rigorous course ; but since he stands obdurate, 
And that no lawful means can carry me 

Out of his envy's reach, I do oppose 10 

My j^mtience to his fury, and am arm'd 
To suffer, with a quietness of spirit, 
The very tyranny and rage of his. 

Duke. Go one, and call the Jew into the court. 

Salerio. He is ready at the door : he comes, my lord. 15 

Enter Shylock. 

Duke. Make room, and let him stand before our face. — 
Shylock, the world thinks, and I think so too, 

Act IV. Scene I. 1. What. Surprise? Exclamation calling atten- 
tion? II, V, 3. — The commentators prefer the latter; but if Antonio were 
tirst to arrive in the court-room, or among the first, the duke might natu- 
rally exj)ress surprise? — 2. Ready. The proper answer when a case is 
called in court? — 5. uucapable. Shakespeare begins this word with 
either u or i ; also ' uncertain,' * unactive,' and many others. — Shakespeare 
uses incapable 6 times, iincapahle 2. Rolfe. — 6. from. Shakespeare also 
uses of with ' empty ' in Love's Labor's Lost, and Trollvs and Cressida. We 
use /rom after ./ree. — 7. qualify. Hamlet, IV, vii, 112. — 8. obdurate. 
Present accent? Abbott, 490. — Tendency to throw accent back? See 
Introduction to Corson's edition of Chaucer's Legend of Good Women, pp. 
xii-xvi. — 9. that. First omitted after 'since,' and then inserted. Often 
so in the Elizabethan age. Abbott, 285. II, vi, 54; Sonnet xxxix. So the 
French use que, instead of repeating si, quand, etc. — 10. envy's. Ill, ii, 
277. — 13. tyranny = cruelty, injurious violence [Schmidt] ? — 16. Enter 



SCENE I.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. I'll 

That thou but lead'st this fashion of thy malice 

To the last hour of act ; and then 'tis thought 

Thou 'It show thy mercy and remorse, more strange 20 

Than is thy strange apparent cruelty ; 

And where thou now exact'st the penalty, 

Which is a pound of this poor merchant's flesh, 

Thou wilt not only loose the forfeiture. 

But, touch'd with human gentleness and love, 25 

Forgive a moiety of the principal ; 

Glancing an eye of pity on his losses, 

Tliat have of late so huddled on his back. 

Enow to press a royal merchant down, 

And pluck commiseration of his state 30 

From brassy bosoms and rough hearts of flint. 

From stubborn Turks and Tartars, never train'd 

To offices of tender courtesy. 

We all expect a gentle answer, Jew. 

Sliylock. I have possess'd your grace of what I purpose ; 35 
And b}'- our holy Sabbath have I sworn 

Shylock. Slowly until in front of the duke, then bow to him. Show 
great deference to the duke throughout the scene, hut to none else, except, 
of course, to Portia, while she seems to favor your suit. Booth. — 18. 
lead'st this fashion = keepest up this show or manner ? — 20. remorse = 
pity? self-condemnation? comj)unction ? In Macbeth, I, v, 42, and usually 
in Shakespeare, it means ' pity.' Do we use ' remorseless ' for ' pitiless ' ? — 
21. apparent = seemznf/, not real [Johnson]? — Lat. ad, to; parere, to 
come in sight; apparere, to become visible. — In Richard II, I, i, 13, it 
means evident, manifest. —22. where = whereas [Johnson] ? in the place 
in which ? — Where and lohereas sometimes interchange meanings in Shake- 
speare. Coriolanus, I, i, 91; 2 Henry VI, I, ii, 58. Abbott, 134, 135.— 
24. loose = release ? — ' Loose ' the early editions ; except folio 4, whicli has 
' lose,' properly the same word once. — 2G. moiety = half ? portion ? — Lat. 
medius, middle ; medietas, a middle course, a half ; Fr. nioitie', a half. Spelled 
in the folio 'moytie ' as if dissyllable. — In 1 Henry IV, III, i, 96, 7noiety = 
a third. — Hamlet, I, i, 90. — 29. enow. Ill, v, 17. — royal merchant. 
Ill, ii, 234. Some of the Italian merchants held mortgages on principalities 
or Idngdoms, or even became quasi sovereigns. We still speak of ' merchant 
princes.' Sir Thomas Gresham, who was very rich, and who made pur- 
chases for Queen Elizabeth, was especially called a ' royal merchant.' Says 
Warburton, "We are not to imagine the word ' royal' to be only a ranting, 
sounding epithet." — "I have now before me 'The Merchant Royal,' "a 
Sermon preached at Whitehall, before the king's majestie . . . Jan. 6, 1607." 
Steevens. — 34. gentle. Some of the editors insist that here is a pun. II, 
vi, 51. Of course the duke is telling a lie ; but he may have some faint 
hope yet ; and would such paronomasia tend to mollify Shylock ? — 35. pos- 
sess'd. I, iii, 58. These first eight lines should be spoken firmly, but with 
great respect in tone and manner. At the allusioji to his oath by his ' holy 
Sabbath,' the right hand should be raised with palm upward, and with an 
inclination of the head. Booth. — 36. Sabbath. Heyes's (the second) 



128 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. \^AC1 IV. 

To have the due and forfeit of my bond. 

If 3'ou deny it, let the danger light 

Upon your charter and your city's freedom. 

You '11 ask me, why I rather choose to have 40 

A weight of carrion flesh than to receive 

Three thousand ducats. I '11 not answer that ; 

But, say, it is my humor : is it answer'd? 

What if my house be troubled with a rat. 

And I be pleas'd to give ten thousand ducats 45 

To have it ban'd? What, are you answer'd yet? 

Some men there are love not a gaping pig ; 

Some, that are mad if they behold a cat : 

Masters of passion sway it to the mood 

Of what it likes or loathes. Now, for your answer : 50 

As there is no firm reason to be render'd 

Why he cannot abide a gaping pig, 

Wh}' he, a harmless necessary cat ; 

So can I give no reason, nor I will not, 

More than a lodg'd hate and a certain loathing 55 

quarto has sabaoth, which means armies, hosts; whereas SabbatJi means 
rest. Bacon, Spenser, Dr. Sam. Johnson, and Sir Walter Scott made the 
same blunder of confounding the two words. — 39. charter. Ill, ii, 273. — 
41. carrion. Often used in contempt by Shakespeare, t— See on II, vii, 63, 
— 43. say = suppose? declare? what if I say? "I will not answer, says 
he, as to a legal or serious question ; but since you want an answer, will 
this serve you"? " Johnson. — humor = caprice ? whim ? The four humors, 
according to Galen, caused the four temperaments of mind; viz., choleric, 
melancholy, phlegmatic, and sanguine. Lat. Jmmere, umere, to he moist ; 
humor, moisture. Skeat. "On the due proportion and combination of 
which (the four humors or moistures in the body) , the disposition alike of 
body and mind depended." Trench. — 46. ban'd. A. S. bana, a murderer. 
Akin to Icel. bcmi, death; Gr. ^6vo<;, phonos, murder; from Gr. \/<i)ev, x>hen, 
to kill. Hence henbane, ratsbane, etc. — 47. love. Ellipsis? I, i, 175. 
Abbott, 244. — gaping, because squealing? or roasted and having a lemon 
or apple in the mouth when brought to the table?— " Some will take on 
like a madman, if they see a pig come to the table." Pierce Penniless, by 
Nash (1592), — Most men, with iCharles Lamb, do love roast pig. Does any- 
body love a squealing pig? — 49. masters of passion, etc. = agencies or 
controllers of passion sway it as it is predisposed ? So Hudson substantially. 
Satisfactory explanation ? — 52, 53. he . . . he = this person . . . that per- 
son? — Like 6 /u-ei/ . . . 6 5e. Allen. — abide = bear ? — A. S. a-, out, same 
as Ger. er-, and biclan, to bide; dbidan, to wait for; Mid. Eng. abiden, 
to wait for. Skeat. — cat. The present editor vividly recollects such a 
case. — 54. nor . . . not. Like the Greek idiom, ovS" aAAo? enaOev ovSel? ovSev ; 
literally, nor did no one else suffer nothing, i.e., nor did any one else suffer 
anything. See note on I, ii, 23. — 55. lodg'd. Low Lat. laubia, a porch, 
labia, a gallery; Old High Ger. loubd ; Mid. High Ger. lovbe ; Ger. laube, 
an arbor, a hut of leaves and branches ; Old Fr, loge, a lodge, cote, shed, 
small house ; Mid. Eng. loggen, to lodge. Skeat. Eng. }odge, to infix.. 



SCENE I.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 129 

I bear Antonio, that I follow thus 

A losing suit against him. Are you answer'd? 

Bassanio. This is no answer, thou unfeeling man, 
To excuse the current of thy cruelty. 

Shylock. I am not bound to please thee with my answer. 60 

Bassanio. Do all men kill the things they do not love ? 

Shylock. Hates any man the thing he would not kill? 

Bassanio. Every offence is not a hate at first. 

Shylock. What ! wouldstthou have a serpent sting thee twice ? 

Antonio. I pray you, think you question with the Jew. 65 
You may as well go stand upon the beach. 
And bid the main flood bate his usual height ; 
You may as well use question with the wolf 
Why he hath made the ewe bleat for the lamb ; 
You may as well forbid the mountain pines 70 

To wag their high tops and to make no noise. 
When they are fretted with the gusts of heaven ; 
You may as well do anything most hard. 
As seek to soften that — than which what 's harder ? — 
His Jewish heart. Therefore, I do beseech you, 75 

Make no more offers, use no farther means. 



to settle. — 57. answer'd. Bow to the duke. At Bassanio's exclamation, 
draw yourself up, your feack toward him, and speak contemptuously with- 
out looking at him! Booth. — 59. current. Mixed metaphor? — King 
John, II, i, 335, "Say, shall the current of our right run on?" — 60. an- 
swer. The second quarto has ansivers f — Better ? — 63. offence = injury ? 
resentment at injury ? sense of harm ? — 64. What ! — Turn on him sharply. 
Booth. — 65. think you question = reflect that you are arguing ? — ' Ques- 
tion' is from n/ki, to search; Sans, chi; Lat. quaeso, I beg; quaerere, to 
ask. STceat. — "I met the duke yesterday and had much question {i.e., 
talk, conversation) with him," As You Like It, III, iv, 32. Very often so 
in Shakespeare. See lines 68, 337. — 67. main flood = flowing of the main 
sea [Meiklejohn] ? — ' tumbling billows of the main.' Richard III, I, iv, 
20. — Teut. base mag, to have power; Old Fr. maine, mctf/ne, great, chief; 
from Lat. magnus, great. Skeat. — A. S. fldd, flood, cognate with floio ; 
Lat. phdt, it rains ; Gr. TrAeeiv, pleein, -rrAojetv, ploein, to swim, float, nXveiv, 
pluein, to wash ; A. S. fldivcai, to flow. Skeat. — bate. Ill, iii, 32. — 
70. pines, etc. Image caught from Goldiug's Ovid (1567), Book xv, p. 195. 
Steevens. — 71. to meike. Following ' forbid ' ? Anacoluthon? See line 
154. — 72. fretted = chafed, irritated? — The quartos have ' fretten.' — 
Used differently in the expression ' this majestical roof fretted with golden 
fire,' Hamlet, II, ii, 296. — Skeat recognizes four meanings of fret ; (1) to 
eat away ; (2) to ornament, to variegate ; (3) fret a kind of grating of 
cross-bars ; (4) a stop on a musical instrument. Will any of these meanings 
do here? — From A. Q.f retail, contracted trom foretan ; for-, intensive pre- 
fix, away ; etan, to eat ; Gr. efieii^, edein ; Lat. edere ; Ger. essen, to eat; from 
«/ad, to eat; Eng. fretten ; Ger. fressen. — See Ruskin's elaborate article on 
fret ' in The Literary World (1879). — 74. what's. The folios have what. 



130 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act IV. 

But with all brief and plain conveniency 
Let me have judgment, and the Jew his will. 

Bassanio. For thy three thousand ducats here is six. 

Shyloch. If every ducat in six thousand ducats 80 

Were m six parts, and every part a ducat, 
I would not draw them ; I would have my bond. 

Duke. How shalt thou hope for mercy, rendering none? 

Sliylock. What judgment shall I dread, doing no wrong? 
You have among you many a purchas'd slave, 85 

Which, like your asses and jouy dogs and mules, 
You use in abject and in slavish parts, 
Because you bought them : shall I say to you , 
Let them_be free, marry them to your heirs? 
Why sweat they under burthens? let their beds 90 

Be made as soft as yours, and let their palates 
Be season'd with such viands ! You will answer, 
The slaves are ours. — So do 1 answer you : 
The pound of flesh, which I demand of him. 
Is dearly bought ; 'tis mine, and I will have it. 95 

If you deny me, fie upon your law ! 
There is no force in the decrees of Venice. 
I stand for judgment : answer ; shall I have it ? 

Duke. Upon my power I may dismiss this court, 
Unless Bellario, a learned doctor, 100 

Whom 1 have sent for to determine this, 
Come here to-day. 

As good? — 77. conveniency = fitness ? — Lat. con, together; venire, to 
come ; convenire, to come together, to he couvenient or becoming; conveniens, 
suitable. 'To do those things which are not convenient,' i.e., becoming, 
Romans, i, 28. — 78. judgment ^sentence against me? condemnation? 
— ' Judge ' is said to mean ' condemn ' in the Bible, as in Lvl:e, xix, 22. 
— 80-82. Slowly, with great determination, in subdued tones. Booth. — 
84. With a look and tone of surprise. Booth. — 87. parts = offices ? func- 
tions? employments? As You Like It, II, vii, 142. — 93. So, etc. lle- 
spectfully but firmly. Booth.— 95. dearly, etc. See III, ii, 308.— "This 
argument . . . seems conclusive. I see not how Venetians or Englishmen, 
Avhile they practise the purchase and sale of slaves, can much enforce or 
demand the law of doinr/ to others c(s we would that they should do to ^is." 
Johnson. — 't is. The second and third quartos have as in place of 'tis. 
Equally good ? — 98. Bow as you ask. Booth. — 99. power = prerogative ? 
authority? — dismiss. Did he mean, 'if worst came to worst,' to post- 
pone indefinitely the case, and so save Antonio? — 101. sent for. Did 
Portia know it before she arrived ? — determine = ascertain ? decide ? — 
Lat. de, down, fully; terminare, to bound, limit, end; from terminus, a 
boundary ; Gr. rep/xa, terw.a, a limit ; s/tar, Sans, tri, to pass over, cross, 
fulfil. SJceat. — ' Long sitting to determine poor men's causes,' 2 Henry VI, 
IV, vii, 80. — 102. come liere to-day. Shylock shrugs his shoulders, and 



SCENE I.] THE MERCHANT OJP VENICE, 131 

Salerio. ' My lord, here stays without 

A messenger with letters from the doctor, 
New come from Padua. 

Duke. Bring us the letters ; call the messenger. 105 

Bassanio. G-ood cheer, Antonio ! What, man, courage yet ! 
The Jew shall have my flesh, blood, bones, and all, 
Ere thou shalt lose for me one drop of blood. 

Antonio. I am a tainted wether of the flock, 
Meetest for death : the weakest kind of fruit 110 

Drops earliest to the ground, and so let me. 
You cannot better be employ'd, Bassanio, 
Than to live still and write mine epitaph. 

Enter Nerissa, dressed like a lawyer's clerk. 

Duke. Came you from Padua, from Bellario? 114 

Nerissa. From both, my lord. Bellario greets your grace. 

[^Presenting a letter. 

Bassanio. Why dost thou whet thy knife so earnestly ? 

Shylock. To cut the forfeiture from that bankrupt there. 

Gratiano. Not on thy sole, but on thy soul, harsh Jew, 
Thou mak'st thy knife keen ; but no metal can, 
No, not the hangman's axe, bear half the keenness 120 

Of thy sharp envy. Can no prayers pierce thee? 

Shylock. No, none that thou hast wit enough to make. 

Gratiano. O, be thou damn'd, inexecrable dog ! 

retires apart from the others. Booth. — 107, 108. Shylock siiailes scornfully, 
and, slowly drawing his knife, at line 113, kneels to whet it. Booth.— 
109. tainted. Lijcidas, 46, has 'Taint-worm to the weanling herds.' — 
113. write my epitaph. Grim humor? — So Hamlet wishes Horatio to 
live and tell Hamlet's story, Hamlet, V, ii, 327, 334-337. — wliet. Whet the 
knife on the sole of the shoe, — not too rapidly. Booth. — 117. forfeiture. 
" Read/or/e^■^." Ritson. To make out ten syllables, have we a right so to 
shorten a word? See our edition of Hamlet, I, ii, 87, 160. Abbott, 467, 4()8, 
46!>. — -118. sole . . . soul. Spelled, first folio, soale and soule respectively; 
in the quartos, both are spelled soiile. The same pun in Julius Csesar, I, i, 14 ? 
and in Romeo and Juliet, I, iv, 15? — White (see his Shakespeare, vol. xii, 
pp. 425, 430) says, " It is very certain that Shakespeare himself pronounced 
all these words (which now have the sound of long o, as throat, road, toad, 
etc.) with the simple sound of o. . . . Ou had the sound which it now has 
in Jiouse." As illustrative of the change of sound of vowels since Shake- 
speare's time. White declares that in Hamlet, I, v, 40, 41, "O my prophetic 
soul, my uncle !" should be pronounced, "O me prophetic sowl (ou as in 
house), me ooncle ! " — For the metaphor, a parallel is found in 2 Henry 
IV, IV, V, 108, where * daggers ' are said to have been ' whetted ' on a ' stony 
heart.' — 120. hangman's = executioner's. See note on the word in our 
edition of Macbeth, II, ii, 27 ; Much Ado, III, ii, 10. — 121. envy. Ill, ii, 
277. — 122. No, No — doggedly, without looking up. Booth. — 123. inexe- 



132 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE, [aCT IV. 

And for thy life let justice be accus'd ! 

Thou almost mak'st me waver in my faith, 125 

To hold opinion with Pythagoras, 

That souls of animals infuse themselves 

Into the trunks of men. Thy currish spirit 

Govern'd a wolf, who hang'd for human slangliter, 

Even from the gallows did his fell soul fleet, 130 

And, whilst thou lay'st in thy unhallow'd dam, 

Inf us'd itself in thee ; for thy desires 

Are wolvish, bloody, starv'd, and ravenous. 

Shylock. Till thou canst rail the seal from off my bond, 
Thou but offend'st thy lungs to speak so loud. 135 

Repair thy wit, good youth, or it will fall 
To endless ruin. — I stand here for law. 

Duke. This letter from Bellario doth commend 
A young and learned doctor to our court. — 
Where is he? 

Ne7'issa. He attendeth here hard by, 140 

To know your answer, whether you '11 admit him. 

Duke. With all my heart. — Some three or four of you 
Go give him courteous conduct to this place. — 
Mean time, the court shall hear Bellario's letter. 

crable. That which cannot be sufficiently execrated might be called ' in- 
execrable.' The 3d and 4th folios have ' inexorable,' a feeble word. Milton 
has * execrable,' Paradise Lost, II, 681. — Better with prayers, ' inexorable ' 
or ' inexecrable ' ? — 124. for = for tolerating ? as for ? on account of ? — 
125. waver, etc. Shylock now looks up at him with mocking wonder. 
During the rest of this speech he slowly takes from his bosom the bond, 
and at its close, points to the seal, still kneeling. Booth. — 126. Pythag- 
oras. The great philosopher's doctrine of metempsychosis made a deep 
impression on Shakespeare. See As You Like It, III, ii, 165; Twelfth 
Nif/ht, IV, ii, 49, 50, 57.— A native of Samos, he flourished about 580 to 
510 B.C. 8ee Class. Diet. — 129. wlio, etc. Seel, iii, 126; II, yu, 4:; Abbott, 
248, 249, 264, 265. — Furness brings evidence that wolves were actually 
hanged in England! — "Pliny mentions a Parrhasian turned into a wolf 
because he had eaten part of a child that had been consecrated to Lycaean 
Jupiter." Steevens.—loO. The natiiral fitness of sounds to express ideas 
is illustrated in the differentiation of float, fleet, and flit ! See our edition 
of Masterpieces, p. 59. — 131. lay'st. Douce thinks this a misprint for 
lay'dst! — 133. starv'd. A. S. steorfan, to die; allied to Dutch sterven; 
leel. star/, labor, toil. From Teut. base starb, to die, A. S. sterfan, to 
kill. Skeat. — Spenser has 'starved with cold,' in Shepherd's Kal., Feb- 
ruary, 83; Milton has 'starve in ice,' Paradise Lost, II, 600. The word 
' starved ' conveys, therefore, the idea of pinched to death, or nearly so, 
with hunger or cold? — 2 Henry VI, III, i, 343. — 134. Now rise, and, after 
* I stand here for law,' turn contemptuously from Gratiano. Booth. — 135. 
offend'st. Lat. ob, against, and obsolete /e?icZe?'e, to strike; oflendere, to 
strike or dash against, hurt, injure. — 137. endless. So the folios; the 
quartos have 'cureless.' Better? — 143. Go, give. — As to the ellipsis, 



SCENE I.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 133 

Clerk [Reads] . Your grace shall understand that at the re- 
ceipt of your letter I am very sick : but in the instant that your 
messenger came, in loving visitation was with me a young doctor 
of Home; his name is Balthasar. I acquainted him with the 
cause in controversy between the Jew and Antonio the merchant; 
%oe turned o'er m^any books together : he is furnished ivith my 
opinion; which, bettered with his otvn learnings, the greatness 
lohereof I cannot enough commend, comes with him,, at my im- 
portunity, to fill up your grace's request in my stead. I beseech 
you, let his lack of years be no impediment to let him lack a 
reverend estimation ; for I never knew so young a body with 
so old a head. Heave him to your gracious acceptance, ivhose 
Trial shall better publish his commendation. 

Duke. You hear the learn'd Belkirio, what he writes : 
And here, I take it, is the doctor comco — 

Enter Portia fer Balthasar. 

Give me your hand. Came you from old Bellario ? IGO 

Portia. I did, my lord. 

Duke. You are welcome : take your place. 

Are you acquainted with the difference 
That holds this present question in the court ? 

Portia. I am informed throughly of the cause. 
Which is the merchant here, and which the Jew? 165 

Duke. Antonio and old Shy lock, both stand forth. 

see on II, vii, 43. — 151, 152. which . . . comes with him. So Cranmer 
'is returned in his opinions,' Henry VIII, III, ii. But in the latter the 
meaning is somewhat doubtful. — 153. fill up. " Up intensifies the verb 
to which it is attached, like Kara, kata, in Greek." So in Troilus and 
Cressida, III, ii, 175, the expression, * As true as Troilus,' it is said, ' shall 
croum up the verse.' — 154. no impediment to let him lack = no such 
impediment as to cause him to lack ? no hindrance to his receiving [Clark 
and Wright] ? — Double negative? — So /aij, me (not, or lest) is used in 
Greek after words signifying to hinder, forbid, etc., a usage which sprang 
originally from a confusion of thought, similar to that in IV, i, 71, 'forbid 
... to make no noise.' — 156. ivhose. Antecedent of ' whose ' ? The rela= 
tive is frequently used in older authors with a laxity not admissible in 
modern English. Clarlc and Wrir/ht. Abbott, 263. — Enter Portia for 
Balthasar. So all the old editions. Rowe changed it to Enter Portia, 
dressed like a doctor of la^os. Needfully ? — ■ 158. Bellario, what. 
Abbott, 414. A frequent Greek idiom. So Luke, iv. 34. — Shylock gives 
deep attention to this letter, and looks quickly and curiously at Portia 
until she is on the dais R. H., then he turns to the Duke. Booth. — 160. 
came. So the folios ; the quartos read ' come.' Preference? — 161, Portia 
goes to a table on dais R. H., facing the Duke. Booth. — 162. difference. 
Euphemistic, like unpleasantness for ' civil ivar ' ? — 164. throughly. II, 
vii, 42. — 166. old. Why this epithet ? Disparagement ? Line 160. — 



134 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act IV. 

Portia. Is your name Shylock? 

Sliylock. Shylock is my name. 

Portia. Of a strange nature is the suit you follow ; 
Yet in such rule that the Venetian law 

Cannot impugn you as you do proceed. — 170 

You stand within his danger, do you not? 

Antonio. Ay, so he says. 

Portia. Do you confess the bond? 

Antonio. I dOo 

Portia. Then must the Jew be merciful. 

Shylock. On what compulsion must I ? tell me that. 

Po7'tia. The quality of mercy is not strain'd, 175 

It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven 
Upon the place beneath : it is twice blest ; 
It blesseth him that gives and him that takes: 
'T is miohtiest in the mightiest : it becomes 

Antonio and Shylock advance and bow to the Duke. Booth. — 167. Is 
your name Shylock? After a look of surprise, he replies doggedly. 
Booth^ — 169. rule = due form [Rolf e] ? — 170. impugn. Lat. in, against ; 
j)ugnare, to fight; impugnare ; Fr. impuf/ner, to fight against. — 171. 
danger = power to harm [Skeat] ? reach or control [Tyrwhitt] ? — A 
legal term? — Lat. dominium, power; Low Lat. (assumed by Littre) 
dominiarium, shortened to doniniariwn, domjarium, Old Fr. dongier, 
Mod. Fr. danqer, peril. The sense of authority remained till the mid- 
dle of the 16th century. Bracket. — Twelfth Night, Y, i, 78. — " To be 
in debt and to be in danger were synonymous terms." Henley. " Out of 
debt out of danger." Old Proverb. — 172. so he says. Do these words 
indicate hopefulness on the part of Antonio? — Do you confess, etc. 
Here Shylock darts a glance at Antonio. Booth. — 174. must. EmjAatic? 
Shylock catches at this word which Portia has used. Emphasis on com- 
pinlsion? — Shylock asks the question with great assurance, and contempt- 
uously turning away. Booth. — 175. strain'd = constrained ? restrained ? 
filtered ? sifted ? confined by laws, restricted to a few [S. R. Davis] ? — 
Lat. stringere, to draw tight; Gr. o-Tpayyt'^eu', strangizein, to press out; 
A. S. streccan, to stretch; Old Fr. estraindre, to strain, wring hard; Mid. 
'Eng. streinen. Skeat. Does she virtually say, "You are right, Shylock, 
in objecting to the word * must ' ; it is characteristic of mercy that it acts 
/reeZiy, not from constraint"? Emphasis on ?6' .^^ — 176. rain. Douce cites 
Eccle.nasticns, xxxv, 20, "Mercy is seasonable in the time of aflliction, as 
clouds of rain in the time of drought." — Clark and Wright deviate from 
their rule against ' sign-post criticism ' so far as to say, " It is worth observ- 
ing how naturally this magnificent speech rises out of the ordinary level 
of the dialogue, and has not the least appearance of being a jmqnire^is 
pannus." — 177. the place heneath. AVhy these three words? Is it 
because this rain falls straight down gently, and is not blown aside by 
driving, constraining winds? — hlest = endowed with blessing? endueil 
with capacity to bless [Allen] ? blessed supremely, or in a great degree 
[Seymour]? saluted with benediction [Eccles] ? — 178. gives . . . takes, 
etc. " A beautiful version of tlie divine Christian axiom, Acts, xx, 35, ' It 
is more blessed to give than to receive.' " Hudson. — 179. in the might- 
iest = in God ? in the mightiest man ? — You, Shylock, are just now mighty ? 



SCENE I.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 135 

The throned monarch better than his crown ; 180 

His sceptre shows the force of temporal power, 

The attribute to awe and majesty, 

Wherein doth sit the dread and fear of kings ; 

But mercy is above this sceptred sway ; 

It is enthroned in the hearts of kings, 185 

It is an attribute to God himself ; 

And earthly power doth then show likest God's 

When mercy seasons justice. Therefore, Jew, 

Though justice be thy plea, consider this, — 

That, in the course of justice, none of us 190 

Should see salvation: we do pray for mercy. 

And that same prayer doth teach us all to render 

The deeds of mercy. I have spoke thus much 

To mitigate the justice of thy plea ; 

Which if thou follow, this strict court of Venice 195 

Must needs give sentence 'gainst the merchant there. 

Shylock. My deeds upon my head ! I crave the law, 
The penalty and forfeit of my bond. 

Portia. Is he not able to discharge the mone}^ ? 

Bassanio. Yes, here I tender it for him in the court ; 200 

— 181. shows = displays ? represents [Rolfe] ? is the emblem of [Clark 
and Wright]? sjmholizes? — Eichard II, III, iv, 42. — 182. the attri- 
bute, etc. = the thing attributed or assigned for the purpose of inspiring 
awe or symbolizing majesty [Hudson]? awe, properly of the subject; 
majesty, of the king, the cause of awe. By hendiadys, both might be taken 
together, equivalent to aioful majesty [Allen] ? — 187. show = show itself ? 
appear ? II, ii, 167. ' * And kings approach the nearest unto God, By giving 
life and safety unto men." King Echoard III, a tragedy, lo96.~"Frin- 
cipes ad prsepotentem Dewn yiulla re propius accedunt quam offensionihiis 
deponendis et ohliviscendis Injuriis," princes in nothing approach nearer 
to the mighty God than in laying aside dislikes and forgetting wrongs. 
Petition of Convocation to Queen Elizabeth for pardon to Archbishop 
Grindal, 1580. This sentiment is found in many writers. — God's. At 
the mention of the sacred name, Shylock bows reverently, which none of 
the Christians do. Cooke, when commended for this, said it was Mack- 
liu's 'business,' and according to my belief, Burbage did it,— perhaps at 
Shakespeare's suggestion. Booth. — 19\. We do pray, etc. "Portia, 
referring the Jew to the Christian doctrine and the Lord's Prayer, is a 
little out of character." Blackstone. But Shylock might have read in 
Ecclesiasticus, xxviii, 2, "Forgive thy neighbor the hurt that he hath done 
unto thee; so shall thy sins also be forgiven when thou prayest." — 
192. render = repay? give as in duty bound? give? — " Redder e in Latin 
has all these senses." Clark and Wright. " Let each man render me his 
bloody hand," Jrdius Caesar, III, i, 185. — Lat. re, back, dare ; to give ; red- 
dere, to restore ; Low Lat. rendere, nasalized form of reddere ; Fr. rendre ; 
Mid. Eng. rendren. — l^. justice. Shylock's plea was 'judgment,' not 
justice [Furness] ? — 195. court. So the quartos; the folios^ 'course'? 
Plausible? — 197. My deeds, etc. After a pause. Booth. — 19% dis- 



136 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act IV. 

Yea, twice the sum : if that will not suffice, 

I will be bound to pay it ten times o'er, 

On forfeit of my hands, my head, m}^ heart : 

If this will not suffice, it must appear 

That malice bears down truth. And I beseech you, 205 

Wrest once the law to your authority ; 

To do a great right, do a little wrong, 

And curb this cruel devil of his will. 

Portia. It must not be. There is no power in Venice 
Can alter a decree established : 210 

'T will be recorded for a precedent. 
And many an error b}^ the same example 
Will rush into the state. It cannot be. 

Sliylock. A Daniel come to judgment ! 3'ea, a Daniel ! 
O wise young judge, how do I honor thee ! 215 

Portia. I pray you, let me look upon the bond. 

Sliylock. Here 't is, most reverend doctor, here it is. 

Portia. Shylock, there 's thrice thy money ofter'd thee. 

Sliylock. An oath, an oath, I have an oath in heaven ! 
Shall I lay perjury upon my soul? 220 

No, not for Venice. 

Portia. Why, this bond is forfeit ; 

And lawfully by this the Jew may claim 
A pound of flesh, to be by him cut oft' 
Nearest the merchant's heart. — Be merciful : 
Take thrice thy money ; bid me tear the bond. 225 

Sliylock. When it is paid according to the tenor. — 

charge. Ill, ii, 268. — 201. twice. So the old editions. Should it be 
' thrice ' ? Line 218. — 205. truth = honesty [Johnson] ? the supreme rule 
of right and equity [Heath] ? reason [Theobald] ? True = honest in Pleas- 
ure for Measure, IV, ii, 40, 43, etc. — "We now call the jury good men 
and true." Johnson. — 207. Can this maxim ever be allowed to guide us? 
— 209. Shylock's face expresses joy and astonishment. Portia utters 'It 
cannot be,' with great decision ; lines 214, 215, Shylock utters almost wildly 
(not too loud), and kisses the hem of Portia's gown. Booth. — 211. pre- 
cedent. The folios read president! — 213. error. ]*^ot a mistake, but a 
departure from the prescribed path [Schmidt]? — 214. Daniel. Not the 
great prophet? See the History of Susanna, xlv, in the Apocrypha, "The 
Geneva and the Bishops' version of which was read in the churches in Shake- 
speare's time." Clark and Wright. See also the Apocryphal i?/sifo?'?/ 0/ 
Bel and the Dragon. — 215. how do I. The quartos read 'how I do.' As 
good? — For this 'thee,' .see Abbott, 233. — 217. With great haste he draws 
forth both the bond and his knife. Booth. — 218. thrice thy money. 
This remark is thrown in as soon as her eye lights on the words ' three thou- 
sand ducats ' ? — Portia uttei-s this line impressively, and Shylock replies as 
solemnly. Booth. — 219. oath. When was the oath taken? See end of 
Act III, sc. i. — 221. forfeit. HI, ii, 312. — She had, perhaps, faintly hoped 



SCENE I.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 137 

It doth appear 3'ou are a worthy judge ; 

You know the law ; your exposition 

Hath been most sound : I charge you by the law, 

Whereof you are a well-deserving pillar, 230 

Proceed to judgment. By my soul I swear, 

There is no power in the tongue of man 

To alter me. I stay here on my bond. 

Antonio. Most heartily I do beseech the court 
To give the judgment. 

Portia. Why then, thus it is : 235 

You must prepare your bosom for his knife. 

Shylock. O noble judge ! O excellent young man I 

Portia. For the intent and purpose of the law 
Hath full relation to the penalty 
Which here appeareth due upon the bond. 240 

Sliylock. 'T is very true. O wise and upright judge ! 
How much more elder art thou than thy looks ! 

Portia. Therefore lay bare your bosom. 

Sliylock. Ay, his breast : 

So says the bond : — doth it not, noble judge ? — ■ 
Nearest his heart ; those are the very words. 245 

Portia. It is so. Are there balance here to weigh 
The flesh? 

Sliylock. I have them ready. 

Portia. Have by some surgeon, Shylock, on 3'our charge. 
To stop his wounds, lest he should bleed to death. 

Sliylock. It is not nominated in the bond. 250 

to find a flaw in it. Emphasis on ts? — 233. on. Ahhott,l%Q. — 239. hath 
full relation = is fully applicable [Clark and Wright, Eccles, etc.] ? — 
Shylock watches the effect of Portia's words on the faces of the Duke and 
Senators. Booth. — 242. more elder. So ' more better ' and ' more braver ' 
in Tempest, I, ii, 19, 438; 'more \2iVg&x,' Antony and Cleopatra, III, vi, 
76 ; ' more rawer,' Hamlet, V, ii, 121," etc. We have also in Shakespeare 
double superlatives. Such forms were allowable then. Ben Jonson char- 
acterizes them as " a certain kind of English Atticism, imitating the manner 
of the most ancientest and finest Grecians." Abbott, 11. — 245, nearest 
his heart. We must suppose that he had caused the bond so to specify ? 
See I, iii, 141, 142. — Be merciful. Shylock shrugs his shoulders and 
shakes his forefinger after the Italian custom. Line 226 he speaks quickly, 
preventing the act. Booth. — 246. balance. The plural form was then 
very rare. Possibly it is a contraction. Abbott, 471. "It is common to 
find a confusion in the number of nouns ending in a sibilant." Clark and 
Wright. — As to the scansion, perhaps it is best to divide the line, making 
' It is so ' a fragment of a separate verse and filling out the time by a quite 
long pause. — 248. charge = expense ? direction? — 249. should bleed. 
So the folios. The quartos, 'do bleed.' Preference ? — 250. It is not. We 



138 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [aCT IV. 

Portia. It is not so express'd : but what of that? 
'T were good you do so much for charity. 

Sliylock. I cannot find it ; 't is not in the bond. 

Portia. Come, merchant, have you any thing to say? 

Antonio. But little : I am arm'd and well prepar'd. — 255 
Give me your hand, Bassanio : fare you well ! 
Grieve not that I am fallen to this for you ; 
For herein Fortune shows herself more kind 
Than is her custom : it is still her use 

To let the wretched man outlive his wealth, 260 

To view with hollow eye and wrinkled brow 
An age of poverty ; from which lingering penance 
Of such misery doth she cut me off. 
Commend me to your honorable wife : 

Tell her the process of Antonio's end ; 265 

Say how I lov'd you, speak me fair in death ; 
And, when the tale is told, bid her be judge 
Whether Bassanio had not once a love. 
Repent not you that you shall lose j'our friend, 
And he repents not that he pays your debt ; 270 

For if the Jew do cut but deep enough, 
I '11 pay it instantly with all my heart. 

follow here the folio reading. Others have ' Is it so.' Better ? — Shylock 
places the scales on the dais, and takes the bond from Portia. Booth. — 
252. 'T -were good you do. Abbott, 370. — "At ' charity ' Shylock rivets 
his gaze on Antonio nntil he has returned the bond to Portia," which he 
does while uttering line 253. Booth.- — 254. Come. So the folios. The 
others, ' You.' — 259. still. I, i, 17. — use = custom ? Hamlet, III, iv, 166, 
"use almost can change the stamp of nature." — 262. poverty. Dissyl., 
the V between two vowels in Shakespeare being almost invariably a van- 
ishing sound. Furness. — 263. misery. So the first folio. Those who 
follow it, with Clark and Wright, incline to accent ' misery ' on the second 
syl. Others insert a before 'misery,' as in folios 2, 3, 4. May not the 
accent of the Lat. 'inisereor (on the 2d syl.) have influenced Shakespeare ? 
See King John, III, iv, 35; Abbott, 490. —266. speak me fair, etc. = 
speak well of me when I am dead ? Say that I died like a man ? — " ' Spoke 
him fair ' in Romeo and Juliet, III, i, 150, = ' spoke to him iu conciliatory 
terms.' This is the usual meaning of tlie phrase." Clark and Wright. 
Abbott, 200. — 268. love = lover ? friend ? Ill, iv, 17. — 269. Repent liot. 
So the folios; the quartos, 'Repent but.' Preferable? — " Surely Antonio 
would wish his friend to regret his loss." Clark and Wright. Yes: but 
as surely Antonio would saij, "Don't grieve for me" ! — Lat. re, again; 
pmnitere (impersonal), to repent; Fr. repentir, to feel sorrow, repent, 
regret; Mid. Eng. repenten; akin to Lat. pvnire, to punish? — 272. in- 
stantly. J. Roberts' (the 1st) quarto (1600) has 'presently.' Equally 
good ? — For ' presently,' see line 378 ; also I, i, 183. — with all my heart. 
"A jest like this enhances the pathos " [Clark and Wright] ? — King John, 
V, vii, 42. — So the dying duke, John of Gaunt, plays on his name, " O, how 



SCENE I.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 139 

Bassanio. Antonio, I am married to a wife 
Which is as dear to me as life itself ; 

But life itself, my wife, and all the world, 275 

Are not with me esteem'd above thy life : 
I would lose all, ay, sacrifice them all 
Here to this devil, to deliver you. 

Portia. Your wife would give you little thanks for that. 
If she were by, to hear you make the offer. 280 

Gratiano. I have a wife, whom, I protest, I love ; 
I would she were in heaven, so she could 
Entreat some power to change this currish Jew. 

JSferissa. 'T is well you offer it behind her back ; 
The wish would make else an unquiet house. 285 

Shylock \_Aside\. These be the Christian husbands. I have 
a daughter ; 
Would any of the stock of Barrabas 
Had been her husband rather than a Christian ! — 
\_To Portia.'] We trifle time : I pray thee, pursue sentence. 

Portia. A pound of that same merchant's flesh is thine : 290 
The court awards it, and the law doth give it. 

Shylock. Most rightful judge ! 

Portia. And you must cut this flesh from off his breast : 
The law allows it, and the court awards it. 

Shylock. Most learned judge ! — A sentence ! Come, 
prepare ! 295 

Portia. Tarry a little ; there is something else. 

that name befits my composition ! Old Gaunt indeed, and gaunt in being 
old . . . Gaunt am I for the grave, gaunt as a grave "; Richard II, II, i, 
73, 74, 82.-274. vv^hich is. II, vii, 4; Abbott, 26G, 278.-275. my wife, 
etc. and 279. Your wife, etc. " F'ortia, who has been defrauded of the 
pleasure of a lover's quarrel, now must put an edge on her profound content 
by the brief pretence of a wife's quarrel with her husband." Boivden in 
ShaJcesi^eariana, May, 1885. — This braggadocio dealing with the dearest 
relationship of life sounds to Shylock like rank blasphemy. D7\ Jastroiv. 

— Shylock maQifests impatience during these speeches, — smiles grimly at 
mention of his cutting deep enough, and contemptuously at the Christians' 
willingness to sacrifice their wives for friendship ; gives a scarcely audible 
sneer at each of their protestations. Booth. — 286. These be. I, iii, 19. — 
287. Barrabas. So spelled in Tyndale's and Coverdale's Bibles, before 
Shakespeare. Note the Greek accent in Bapa|3|3a<r. Mattheio, xxvii, 16, 17, 
etc. With intense hate in look, and subdued tones, between your teeth, as 
it were. Booth. — 289. pursue. The books say this is accented on 1st 
syl. But must we accent every alternate syllable in these lines, makiug 
each foot an iambus? Is it so in lines 286, 296, 302, etc.? Abbott, 492.— 
292. With back to audience, and knife raised high above his head. Booth. 

— 294. most learned judge. Uttered with an exultant voice, not too 
loud ; and ' a sentence ' is spoken with a low bow to the Duke. Booth. — 



140 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act IV. 

Tins bond doth give tbee here no jot of blood ; 

The words expressly are, a pound of flesh : 

Take then thy bond, take thou thy pound of flesh ; 

But, in the cutting it, if thou dost shed 30(J 

One drop of Christian blood, thy lands and goods 

Are, by the laws of Venice, confiscate 

Unto the state of Venice. 

Gratiano. O upright judge ! — Mark, Jew : — O learned 
judge! 

Sliylock. Is that the law ? 

Portia. Thyself shalt see the act : 305 

For, as thou urgest justice, be assur'd 
Thou shalt have justice, more than thou desirest. 

Gratiano. O learned judge ! — Mark, Jew : — a learned 
judge ! 

Shylock. I take this offer, then ; pay tlie bond thrice. 
And let the Christian go. 

Bassanio. Here is the money. 310 

Portia. Soft! 
The Jew shall have all justice ; — soft ! no haste : — 
He shall have nothing but the penalt3^ 

Gratiano. O Jew ! an upright judge, a learned judge ! 

Portia. Therefore prepare thee to cut off the flesh. 315 

Shed thou no blood ; nor cut thou less nor more 
But just a pound of flesh : if thou tak'st more 
Or less than a just pound, be it so much 
As makes it light or heavy, in the substance. 
Or the division of the twentieth part 320 

299. take, then. The folios have * then take.' Preference ? — 302. con- 
fiscate. A Latinism. " Words like ' miscreate ' . . . from Lat. participles 
... may be regarded as participial adjectives." Abbott, 312. They are 
from Latin verbs of first conjugation, as 'dedicate,' 'consecrate,' etc. — 
303. Shylock staggers backward and drops the knife. Booth. — 305. In a 
choked tone of amazement to the Dnke, bowing. His opinion of Portia is 
now changed ; all he says is addressed to the Duke, except ' I am content,' 
when he looks steadily at Portia. Booth. — 309. this offer. Capell, Dyce, 
Hudson, Allen, Furness, and some others change 'this' to 'his.' But 
M. Mason says, " This offer is right. Shylock specifies the oifer he means, 
which is to have the bond paid thrive." Says Malone, " The Jew naturally 
insists upon the larger sum." Choose ! — See lines 201, 218. — 311. Soft. 
I, iii, 52. — 312. all justice = unmixed justice? — 318. just = fair? exact 
[Abbott, 14]? See 'equal,' in I, iii, 139. Sans, yu, to bind; L>a.t. jus, that 
which binds, right, law; Justus; Fr. juste, just. — be it. So the folios; 
the quartos insert 'but,' Needed? — 319. substance = mass [Clark and 
Wright]? gross weight [Meiklejohn] ? amount [Rev. John Hunter]? — 
320. division = fraction ? — " There is a climax in Portia's threat : first, 



SCENE I.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 141 

Of one poor scruple — nay, if the scale do turn 

But in the estimation of a hair, 

Thou cliest and all thy goods are confiscate. 

Gratiano. A second Daniel, a Daniel, Jew ! 
Now, infidel, I have thee on the hip. 325 

Portia. Why doth the Jew pause? — Take thy forfeiture. 

Shylock. Give me my principal, and let me go. 

Bassanio. I have it ready for thee ; here it is. 

Portia. He hath refus'dit in the open court: 
He shall have merely justice, and his bond. 330 

Gratiano. A Daniel, still say I, a second Daniel ! 
I thank thee, Jew, for teaching me that word. 

Shylock. Shall I not have barely my principal ? 

Portia. Thou shalt have nothing but the forfeiture. 
To be so taken at thy peril, Jew. 335 

Shylock. Why, then the devil give him good of it ! 
I '11 stay no longer question. 

Portia. Tarry, Jew : 

The law hath yet another hold on you. 
It is enacted in the laws of Venice, 

If it be prov'd against an alien, 340 

That by direct or indirect attempts 
He seek the life of any citizen. 
The party 'gainst the which he doth contrive 
Shall seize one half his goods ; the other half 
Comes to the privy coffer of the state ; 345 



if it be lighter or heavier, i.e., according to ordinary tests ; then, if it weigh 
less or more by a single grain ; thirdly, if the scale be uneven by a single 
hair's breadth." Clark and Wright. — 322. estimation = estimated 
weight [Meiklejohn, Furness] ? estimated breadth ? — 325. hip. I, iii, 40. 
— 326. Why doth the Jew pause? Why, indeed? See Furness. — 
This is the turning-point between tragedy and comedy ! — 327. After a brief 
struggle, Bassanio offers the bag of money ; Shylock takes it, but Gratiano 
seizes it from him. Booth. — 335. so taken. The folios, * taken so.' As 
good? — 340. alien. Syllables? See 'ocean,' I, i, 8. — A recollection of 
the syllabication of Lat. a-li-e'-nus ? — Rolfe (in Shakespeariana, Jan., 1886) 
points out that this doctrine is not in the old story, but is Shakespeare's 
invention, and is good law introduced to satisfy Shakespeare's conscience 
or sense of justice, Portia's quibble being 'bad law.' Hunter thinks the 
new part is Bellario's, the quibble being Portia's. — 342. Abbott, 368. — 
343. party = litigant, plaintiff or defendant in a lawsuit ? In Love's Labor's 
Lost, IV, ii, 128, ' the party writing ' appears to signify merely ' the person 
writing.' — tlie which. I, iii, 4; III, iv, 34. — contrive. Lat. con-, 
wholly; turbare, to move, seek for, lastly to find, to reach; Fr. trouver, 
b = v ; u = o ; r is transposed ; o changed to ou ; torver becoming trouver ; 
Old Fr. controver, to find. Mid. Eng. controuven, to hit upon, find out, 



142 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act iv. 

And the offender's life lies in the mercy 

Of the duke only, 'gainst all other voice. 

In which predicament, I say, thou stand'st ; 

For it appears, by manifest proceeding. 

That indirectly, and directly too, 350 

Thou hast contriv'd against the very life 

Of the defendant, and thou hast incurr'd 

The danger formerly by me rehears'd. 

Down therefore, and beg mercy of the duke. 

Gratiano. Beg that thou mayst have leave to hang thy- 
self : 355 
And yet, thy wealth being forfeit to the state. 
Thou hast not left the value of a cord ; 
Therefore thou must be hang'd at the state's charge, 

Duke. That thou shalt see the difference of our spirit, 
I pardon thee thy life before thou ask it. 360 

For half thy wealth, it is Antonio's ; 
The other half comes to the general state, 
Which humbleness may drive unto a fine. 

Portia. Ay, for the state, not for Antonio. 

Shylock. Nay, take my life and all ; pardon not that : 365 
You take my house when you do take the prop 
That doth sustain my house ; you take my life 
When you do take the means whereby I live. 

Portia. What mercy can you render him, Antonio? 

Gratiano. A halter gratis ; nothing else, for God's sake. 370 

Antonio. So please my lord the Duke and all the court 
To quit the fine for one-half of his goods, 
I am content, so he will let me have 

plan. Contrive is a late and corrupt spelling. Skeat. — Line 351. — 346. in 
= at ? Abbott, 163. — 348. predicament = category ? dilemma ? situation ? 
plight ? — Originally a term in logic, 1 Henry IV, I, iii, 168 ; Bom. and Jul., 
Ill, iii , 86. — 353. formerly. Warburton conjectured ' formally.' Better ? 
— In legal language 'formerly' meant 'as aforesaid.' — 354. Down, etc. 
Shylock is about to kneel ; Gratiano holds him by the shoiilder while he 
addresses him, and then drops him. "When Shylocks says, ' Nay, take my 
life,' etc., he is still kneeling, with head very low, and speaks with a trem- 
bling, tearful voice. When Portia asks, ' What mercy can you render him, 
Antonio?' Shylock rises quickly, as if stung. Booth. — 359. shalt. Abbott, 
348. — spirit. So the folios and Roberts' quarto (1600) . The other quartos, 
spirits. Choice? Note that ow?' is emphatic. Scan. — 360. pardon. Lat. 
per, thoroughly; donare, to give; Low hat. perdonare, to remit a debt, to 
indulge, pardon ; Yr.2)ardonner. — 363. drive unto = reduce-to [Schmidt] ? 
induce me to commute for [Clark and Wright, Rolfe, etc.] ? move me to re- 
duce to [Hudson] ? — 364. not for Antonio. Antonio's half cannot be so 
commuted ? — 366. prop. II, ii, 60, — Ecclesiasticus, xxxiv, 22. — 370. gra- 



SCENE I.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 143 

The other half in use, to render it, 

Upon his death, unto the gentleman 375 

That lately stole his daughter : 

Two things provided more, — that, for this favor, 

He presently become a Christian ; 

The other, that he do record a gift, 

Here in the court, of all he dies possess'd, 380 

Unto his son Lorenzo and his daughter. 

Duke. He shall do this, or else I do recant 
The pardon that I late pronounced here. 

Portia. Art thou contented, Jew? what dost thou say? 
' Sliylock. I am content. 

Portia. Clerk, draw a deed of gift. 385 

Shylock. I pray you, give me leave to go from hence ; 
I am not well. Send the deed after me, 
And I will sign it. 

Duke. Get thee gone, but do it. 

Qratiano. In christening thou shalt have two godfathers ; 
Had I been judge, thou shouldst have had ten more, 390 

tis. I, iii, 38. — 374. in use = a^ interest (in Antonio's hands, and Shy- 
lock was to enjoy the produce of it) [Ritson] ? It is not meant that 
Shylock was to receive the interest from Antonio, for then the young 
couple would get no advantage from the arrangement [Clark and Wright] ? 
— What say you of the following interpretation : Antonio is looking out 
for the good of the improvident Lorenzo and Jessica, not for himself. He 
is content that Shylock should retain till death half his present property, 
the other half heing surrendered to Antonio in trust for Lorenzo and Jessica, 
who are to receive tlie income accruing from it until Shylock's death, and 
then are to receive the whole of the two divisions with all increments? 
Does the arrangement leave Shylock free to ivaste the half which the state 
relinquishes tohim? — See Furness. — 376. stole, etc. Shylock shrinks at 
this ; and at the word ' Christian ' litters a short, sharp groan, staggers hack- 
ward, and raises his right hand with the jjalm upward — face also upraised, 
with a look of utter despair until the Duke has spoken, then collapses. 
Booth. — o78. presently. Seel, i, 183; II, ix, 30.— 380. possess'd. Ellip- 
sis? V, i, 267. — 382. recant. Lat. re, hack; cantare, to sing; recantare, 
to sing hack, recant, recall. The original sense was perhaps to reverse a 
charm. Skeat. — 384. What dost thou say ? Shylock, thus addressed, 
raises hoth liead and hands as if ahout to appeal to Portia, checks himself, 
and says very slowly, as head and hands drop, ' I am content.' His last 
words are^uttered plaintively. Shylock hows low to the Duke, and slowly 
totters towards the door — falls against the door, which slowly opeus. 
Booth. — 385. I am content. These three words might have spared unto 
millions of Jews their lives, and saved fearful, innumerable agonies. No, 
a thousand times, no ! Shylock has no Jewish blood in his veins ; else 
with that very knife that was to pay Antonio's forfeited bond he would 
have spilled it to the very last drop. Eev. Dr. Kohler. — 389. thou shalt. 
The quartos, 'shalt thoii.' Well? — 390. ten more. A jury of twelve. 
Theobald. " I will leave you to your godfathers in law. Let twelve men 



144 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [aCT iv. 

To bring thee to the gallows, not the font. 

\_Exit Shylock. 

Duke. Sir, I entreat you home with me to dinner. 

Portia. I humbly do desire your grace of pardon : 
I must away this night toward Padua, 
And it is meet I presently set forth. 395 

Duke. I am sorry that 3"our leisure serves 3'ou not. 
Antonio, gratify this gentleman. 
For, in my mind, you are much bound to him. 

[Exeimt Duke and his train. 

Bassanio. Most worthy gentleman, I and my friend 
Have by your wisdom been this day acquitted 4^0 

Of grievous penalties ; in lieu whereof, 
Three thousand ducats, due unto the Jew, 
We freely cope your courteous pains withal. 

Antonio. And stand indebted, over and above. 
In love and service to you evermore. 405 

Portia. He is well paid that is well satisfied ; 
And I, delivering you, am satisfied. 
And therein do account myself well paid : 
My mind was never yet more mercenary. 
I pray you, know me when we meet again : 410 

I wish you well, and so I take my leave. 

Bassanio. Dear sir, of force I must attempt you further ; 
Take some remembrance of us, as a tribute, 

work. " The Devil Is an Ass, by Ben Jonson. — Were there juries of twelve 
in Venice ? — 391. Exit. I suspect Shakespeare sends the old villain off 
the stage at last with more of the pity of the audience than any of the other 
dramatists of the time would have ventured to arouse. I suspect he is the 
only human Jew of the English drama up to that time. Macdonald, 1883. 

— 393. of pardou. Repeated instances of this idiom are found in Shake- 
speare, as in Midsutniner Night's Bream, III, i, 175, 176, " Good Master 
Peaseblossom, I shall desire you of more acquaintance"; Othello, III, iii, 
212. So in Spenser's Faerie Queene, II, ix, 42. Abbott, 174. "Is not this 
use of the preposition a relic of the Norman French? " Allen. — 0/= for ? 

— 397. gratify =: recomj)ense. Like Gr. xap^o/mai, charizomai, I make a 
gratification, that is, a present, a reward. Allen. — So in Coriolanns, II, ii, 
36, 'to gratify his noble service.' — 401. lieu = place? recompense? con- 
sideration? payment? Lat. ^oc?^s,• OldFr. ?ew,- Fr. ?ie?/., place. — 403. cope 
= vie with? offer in return for [Halliwell] ? match? pay [Dyce] ? requite 
[Clark and Wright] ? meet, encounter, have to do with [Schmidt] ? Dutch 
koopen, to buy, purchase; orig., to bargain; akin to A. S. cedpian, to 
cheapen, cedp, a bargain. STceat. — v^itlial = with ? Ill, iv, 72. Abbott. 
196. " Withal 'governs' ducats''? — 409. more mercenary than now? 
than to wish no other reward than the satisfaction of doing good? — 412. 
of force = perforce ? — attempt = tempt [Rolf e] ? press upon [Meikle- 
john] ? As ' approve ' is used in Shakespeare for * prove,' so ' attempt ' for 



SCENE I.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 145 

Not as a fee : grant me two things, I pray you, 

Not to deny me, and to pardon me. 415 

Portia. You jDress me far, and therefore I will yield. 
Give me your gloves, I '11 wear them for your sake ; 
And, for your love, I '11 take this ring from you. — 
Do not draw back your hand ; I '11 take no more ; 
And you in love shall not deny me this. 420 

Bassanio. This ring, good sir, — alas ! it is a trifle ; 
I will not shame myself to give you this. 

Portia. I will have nothing else but only this ; 
And now methinks I have a mind to it. 

Bassanio. There 's more depends on this than on the 
value. 425 

The dearest ring in Venice will I give you, 
And find it out by proclamation : 
Only for this, I pray you, pardon me. 

Portia. I see, sir, you are liberal in offers : 
You taught me first to beg ; and now methinks 430 

You teach me how a beggar should be answer'd. 

Bassanio. Good sir, this ring was given me by my wife ; 
And when she put it on she made me vow 
That I would neither sell, nor give, nor lose it. 

Portia. That 'sense serves many men to save their gifts. 435 
And if yonr wife be not a mad woman. 
And know how well I have deserv'd the ring, 
She would not hold out enemy for ever. 
For giving it to me. Well, peace be with you ! 

[^Exeunt Portia and JSferissa. 

Antonio. My lord Bassanio, let him have the ring : 440 
Let his deservings and m^^ love withal 
Be valued against your wife's commandement. 

Bassanio. Go, Gratiano, run and overtake him ; 

'tempt'? So in Measure for Measure, IV, ii, 181, 182. —416. gloves. 
Antonio's or Bassanio's? I'll wear tliem. Does she pretend to have 
large hands?— 420. shall not deny = ^o^7; not deny? See 1, i, 116.-422. 
to give. Abbott, 356 ; 1, i, 40. — 426. dearest = most loved ? most precious ? 
costliest? A. S. deore, dyre, dear, expensive ; Icel. dyrr ; Ger. theuer, dear, 
precious, beloved, sacred.— 436. And if. The old copies all have ' and if.' 
A pleonasm, like ' or ere ' [Clark and Wright] ? ' An ' or ' and ' = ' if,' in 
I, ii, 77; II, ii, 51; II, iv, 10; V, i, 174.-442. valued against your 
wife's commandement. So the first three folios. It is a question 
whether ' commandement ' should be three or four syllables. It appears to 
be four in 1 Henry VI, I, iii, 20, " From him I have express commande- 
ment." Is it really necessary to limit the line to ten syllables ? — The 



l-tG THE MERCHAyr OF TEXICE. [aCT IV. 

Give him the ring, and bring him, if thou canst. 

Unto Antonio's house : away! make haste. — \_ExitGrat. i4o 

Come, you and I will thitlier presently ; 

And in the morning early will we both 

Fly toward Belmont : come, Antonio. \_Exeunt. 



Scene II. The Same. A Street. 

Enter Portia and Nerlssa. 

Portia. Inquii'e the Jew's house out, give him this deed, 
And let him sign it : we '11 away to-night. 
And be a day before our husbands home. 
This deed will be well welcome to Lorenzo. 

Enter Gratiano. 

Gratiano. Fau' sir, you are well o'erta'en : 5 

My lord Bassanio, upon more advice, 
Hath sent you here this ring, and doth entreat 
Your company at dinner. 

Portia. That cannot be : 

His ring I do accept most thankfully. 

And so, I pray you, tell him: furthermore, 10 

I pray you, shew my youth old Shylock's house. 

Gratiano. That will I do. 

Nerissa. Sir, I would speak with 3-ou.'— 

\^Aside to Poi'tia.~\ I'll see if I can get my husband's ring. 
Which I did make him swear to keep for ever. 

Poiiia [^Aside to JS'erissa']. Thou mayst, I warrant. We 
shall have old swearing, 15 

That they did give the rings away to men ; 

quartos have 'valew'd gainst.' Abbott, iSS. — 446. presently. Line .378. 
— 447. In the morning, etc. Is this consistent with III, ii, 310. 320? — 
Your opinion of the legal aspects of this case of Shylock vs. Antonio ? Shy- 
lock's argument ? Fair play for him ? Is he a fair representative of his 
people? Portia's intellect and heart? Attitude of each character ? Moral 
taught ? Your conception of Shylock ? 

Scene IT. 6. more advice = more reflection fSteeveus] ? So in Meaa- 
vre for Mpofnirp, V, i, 460, and elsewhere in Shakespeare. — 12. Great 
dramatic skill is shown in this contrivance for bringinsr Tiratiano and 
Nerissa together [Clark and Wright] ? — 1.5. old swearing. Old = 
plentiful, abundant, great [Dyce] ? "'Old' was a frequent intensive in 
colloquial speech, very much as hvfiP is used now." Hudson. See our 
edition of Macbeth, II, iii, 2. So in Merry Wives, I, iv, 4, and elsewhere 



SCENE II.] THE MERCHANT OF VEX ICE. 14-7 

But we "ii outface them, aud outsvrear them too. 
Awa}^ ! make haste : thou kuow'st where I will tuny. 

Nerissa. Come, good sir, will you shew me to this house? 

[^Exeunt. 



in Shakespeare. Dyce remarks that the Ital. lecrJuo is so used. Boys iji 
Xew England say ' a high old time." The word 'tall ' is made to do duty 
in the same way.— Value of this scene ? Portia's practical business sense ? 



148 . THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [aCT T. 



ACT V. 

Scene I. Belmont. Avenue to Portia's House. 
Enter Lorenzo and Jessica. 

Lorenzo. The moon shines bright. In such a night as this, 
When the sweet wind did gently kiss the trees 
And the}- did make no noise — in such a night, 
Troihis methiuks mounted the Trojan walls. 
And sigh'd his soul toward the Grecian tents, 5 

Where Cressid lay that night. 

Jessica. In such a night 

Did Thisbe fearfully o'ertiip the dew ; 
And saw the lion's shadow ere himself, 
And ran dismay'd away. 

Lorenzo. In such a night 

Stood Dido with a willow in her hand 10 

Upon the wild sea-banks, and waft her love 
To come again to Carthage. 

Act V. Scene I. The graceful winding up of this play in the fifth act, 
after the tragic business is despatched, is one of the happiest instances 
of Shakespeare's knowledge of the principles of the drama. Hazlitt. — 
4. Troilus. Son of Priam, or, as some say, of Apollo. He fell by the 
hand of Achilles. Cressid's name is not found in the ancient classics. 
Shakespeare seems to have drawn from the lines in Chaucer's Troilus and 
Cresseide, descriptive of Troilus mounting the walls to see her, " Upon the 
tixdlis fast eke would he walke. . . . And ferre his heade ovii' the loalle he 
leide," etc. — 7. Thisbe. This story is in Ovid, Metamorphoses, IV, 55- 
106. Golding's translation was published in 1564. See also Shakespeare's 
Midsummer Nif/hfs Bream, V, i, and Saxe's burlesque. Shakespeare 
draws from Ovid, and from Chaucer's Legend of Good Women, where 
Troilus, Cressida, Thisbe, Dido, and Medea are successively introduced. 
Chaucer drew from Guido da Colonna's Historia (about 1260). — 10. Dido. 
Queen of Carthage. See Class. Diet. — The representation of Dido with a 
willow in her hand convinced Steevens ' that Shakespeare was no reader 
of the classics.' Surely he was no such reader as Steevens, who would not 
have dared to originate anything. — ^villow^. The willow was a symbol 
of forsaken love. 'Faerie Qneene, I, i, 9 ; 3 Henry VI, III, iii, 228 ; Othello, 
IV, iii, 27; song in the Mikado.' — 11. waft = beckoned as by a wave of 
the hand ? The word is a variant of ivave, formed by taking the past tense 
waved (corrupted to ?rr//i by rapid pronunciation), as the infinitive mood 
of a new verb. So hoist, due to hoised ; graft, due to graffed. Icel. vdfa, 



SCENE I.] THE MERCHANT OF VEmCE. 149 

Jessica. In such a night 

Medea gather'd the enchanted herbs 
That did renew old ^son. 

Lorenzo. In such a night 

Did Jessica steal from the wealthy Jew, 15 

And with an un thrift love did run from Venice 
As far as Belmont. 

Jessica. In such a night 

Did young Lorenzo swear he lov'd her well, 
Stealing her soul with many vows of faith, 
And ne'er a true one. 

Lorenzo. In such a night 20 

Did pretty Jessica, like a little shrew. 
Slander her love, and he forgave it her. 

Jessica. I would out-night you, did no body come ; 
But, hark, I hear the footing of a man. 

Enter Stephano. 

Lorenzo. Who comes so fast in silence of the night? 25 

Stephano. A friend. 

Lorenzo. A friend! what friend? your name, I pray 3^ou, 
friend ? 

Stephano. Stephano is my name ; and I bring word, 
My mistress will before the break of day 
Be here at Belmont : she doth stray about 30 



to swing, vibrate. Skeat. Abbott, 311, 312. — 13. 3Ied.ea, daughter of 
-^etes, king of Colchis on the east shore of the Black Sea. Ovid tells us 
that she drew the blood from the veins of ^son, father of Jason, and then 
filled them with the juice of certain magic herbs, restoring him to j^outh. 
See Class. Diet. ; Ovid's Metamorjihoses, vii ; Gower's Confessio Amantis. 
— One of the pictures that the moonlight pours in upon these happy hearts 
is the sorceress Medea gathering her enchanted herbs, — a conception in 
the finest harmony with the soft mysterious light of the moon. Minto. — 
The mention of Medea, who seized her father's treasure and ran away with 
Jason, is particularly suggestive of their own experience ! or vice versa? — 
1.5. steal, (^'ould not Lorenzo have chosen a less suggestive word ? But 
are there not two distinct and utterly different Jessicas? Fiirness.— 
16. unthrift. This word occurs also in Tim on of Athens. lY, iii, oOo; 
Richard II, II, iii, 121; Sonnets, ix, 9; xiii, 13. — 19. stealing. An echo 
of Lorenzo's word in line 15? — 20. ne'er. Abbott, 510, mends the metre, 
but spoils the emphasis by reading never. — 28. Stepbano. The commen- 
tators will have it that the second syllable of 'Stephano' is meant to be 
^accented here, though not in The Tempest. On the same principle must 
' ' Troilus ' in line 1, and ' Portia ' in line 228, be accented on second syllable ? 
also 'Shylock' in I. iii, 55; IV. i, 17, 218; Tubal in I, iii, 51? May we 
allow Shakespeare a little liberty in this matter ? See line 51, where the 



150 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act V. 

By holy crosses, where she kneels and pra3's 
For happy wedlock hours. 

Lorenzo. Who com'ies with her? 

Stephano. None but a hoi}'' hermit, and her maid. 
I pray j^ou, is my master yet return'd ? 

Lorenzo. He is not, nor we have not heard from him. 35 
But go we in, I pray thee, Jessica, 
And ceremoniously let us prepare 
Some welcome for the mistress of the house. 

Enter Launcelot. 

Launcelot. Sola, sola ! wo ha, ho ! sola, sola ! 

Lorenzo. Who calls ? 40 

Launcelot. Sola ! did you see Master Lorenzo and Mistress 
Lorenzo? sola, sola! 

Lorenzo. Leave hollaing, man : here. 

Launcelot. Sola ! where ? where ? 

Lorenzo. Here. 45 

Launcelot. Tell him there 's a post come from my master, 
with his horn full of good news ; my master will be here ere 
morning. \_Exit. 

Lorenzo. Sweet soul, let 's in, and there expect their coming. 
And yet no matter : why should we go in ? — 50 

My friend Stephano, signify, I pray j^ou, 

metre seems to require accent on the second syllable. — 31. crosses. 

*' But there are crosses, wife; here 's one in Waltham, 
Another at the Abbey, and the third 
At Ceston; and 'tis ominous to pass 
Any of these without a Pater-Noster." 

The Merry Devil of Edmonton, cited by Steevens, who assigns them or the 
worshij) at them, as a reason for the delay of a wedding. — "These holy 
crosses still, as of old, bristle the land in Italy, and sanctify the sea. Be- 
sides those contained in churches, they mark the spot where heroes were 
born, where saints rested, where travellers died." Knifjht. — 33. hermit. 
Why mentioned ? — 36. go we. First person plural imperative? II, viii, 
53. In next line 'let us prepare ' is said by some to be the ordinary form 
of first person imperative, but is not ' let ' the second person imperative, and 
'prepare' the infinitive? — 37. ceremoniously ^= according to the forms 
of civility, duly [Schmidt] ? hypallage [Furness] ? — 39. sola. Imitative; 
a 'tooting,' post-horn sound? — 41. Master Lorenzo and 3Iistress 
Lorenzo. Furness shows that this was jjrobably evolved by the printers 
from M. Lorenzo ! — 46. post. II, ix, 99. — Successive changes of meaning 
of post ? — 49. S"weet soul. The old editions assign these words to Launce- 
lot after the word ' morning.' Rowe made the change, which has been 
generally followed. Wisely? — expect. Lat. ex, out; spectare, to look; 
expectiire, to look for, await. — 51. After 'signify' the quartos insert 'I.' 



SCENE I.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 



151 



Within the house, your mistress is at hand ; 

And bring your music forth into the air. — \_Exit Stephano. 

How sweet the moonliglit sleeps upon this bank ! 

Here will we sit, and let the sounds of music 55 

Creep in our ears : soft stillness and the night 

Become the touches of sweet harmony. 

Sit, Jessica. Look how the floor of heaven 

Is thick inlaid with patines of bright gold : 

There 's not the smallest orb which thou behold'st 60 

But in his motion like an angel sings, 

Still quiring to the young-eyed cherubins ; 

Such harmony is in immortal souls. 



Well'? — 53. music. Still used colloquially to include musicians and 
instruments? " Bid the music leave; they are harsh and heavy to me " ; 
Henry VIII, IV, ii, 94, 95. — Line 98. — 56. creep in = creep into ? In and 
into were to some extent interchanged in Shakespeare s time. Abbott, loy. 
Tempest, I, ii, 390. -See ante, II, viii, 42.-59. patines. The earliest 
editions have variously 'pattens,' 'pattents,' and / patterns, /he best 
recent editions including those of Rolfe, Hudson, White, Clark and Wright, 
have ' patines.' Gr. naravr,, patane, a flat dish, from v^pat, to spread out ; 
Lat. «o^ere, to lie open, spread out; 2:>citina, a wide shallow bowl, basin, 
pan ; Low Lat. o^citena, the plate (usually of gold or silver) for bread m 
the sacrament of the Lord's Supper; Mid. "Eng.imteyn. 1 hose who read 
' patterns ' explain the word as meaning constellation, or figures like those 
of a carpet or mosaic work. Those who read ' patines ' usually refer to the 
golden plates of Eucharist. Furness argues skilfully that the ' patines are 
fleecy 'broken clouds, like flaky disks of curdled gold which slowly drift 
across the heavens, and veil at times the brightness of the moon —61. Ins 
motion. Its is not infrequent in Florio's (translation m 1603 oijMon- 
taic/ne, which Shakespeare is generally believed to have read; but its is 
not found in the ' authorized version ' of the Bible (King James s, 1611). 
Modern editions have substituted ' its' for ' it ' in Leviticus, xxv, 5. Shake- 
speare uses ' its ' rarely ; Milton three times. See our edition of Hamlet,^ 
I ii, 216. Abbott, 228. — sings. " When the morning stars sang together. 
Job xxxviii 7. "His legs bestrid the ocean: his rear'd arm Crested the 
Avorld : his voice was propertied As all the tuned spheres " Antony and 
Cleopatra, Y, ii, 82, 83, 84; Twelfth Night, HI, i, 109; As You Like It, II, 
vii, 6. See Montaigne's Essay on Custom, Book I, chap. 22 ; Paradise Lost 
V 177 178 625, 626 ; also Milton's Hymn on the Nativity (note on crystal 
spheres ') in our Masterpieces, p. 247. See also Prologue in Heaven, first 
stanza, Goethe's Faust. -62. still quiring = continually sounding an 
accompaniment [Hudson] ? ringing in concert, and being tuned accordingly 
rSchmidt] ? Quire is another spelling of ' choir.' Gr. xopo^< cbprus, .Lat. 
chorus, a dance in a ring, a band of dancers and singers. For still, see 
I i, 17. — cherubins. So in the quartos and first two folios, /or tlie 
s ngular, Shakespeare uses 'cherub' in IRmilet, IV, iii, 47, and cherubm 
in Macbeth, I, vii, 22; Tempest, I, ii, 152; Othello, IY,u, 62; so Spenser 
and Dryden.— Heb. k'rub, plural h'ruhim, a mystic figure, ihe Meb. 
plural is cherubim., but our Bibles wrongly have cherubims m many pas- 
sages. Skeat. — Yv. cherubin; Ital. cherub ino ; Span, querxih in. In the 
old version of the Te Deum we read, " To thee cherubin and seraphin con- 
tinually do cry." — 63. such harmony, etc. " Touching musical harmony 



152 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act v. 

But whilst this muddy vesture of decay 

Doth grossly close it in, we cannot hear it. — 65 

Enter Musicians. 

Come, ho ! and wake Diana with a hymn : 

With sweetest touches pierce your mistress' ear, 

And draw her home with music. \_Music. 

Jessica. I am never merry when I hear sweet music. 

Lorenzo. The reason is, your spirits are attentive : 70 

For do but note a wild and wanton herd, 
Or race of youthful and unhandled colts. 
Fetching mad bounds, bellowing and neighing loud, 
Which is the hot condition of their blood ; 
If they but hear perchance a trumpet sound, 75 

Or any air of music touch their ears. 
You shall perceive them make a mutual stand. 
Their savage eyes turn'd to a modest gaze J 

By the sweet power of music : therefore the poet X^f 

Did feign that Orpheus drew trees, stones, and floods ; 80 

. . . such is the force thereof, and so pleasing effects it hath in that very 
part of man that is most divine, that some have heen thereby induced to 
think tliat the soul itself, by nature is, or hath in it, harmony," Hooker's 
Ecclesiastical Polity, V, 38. For the doctrine of the Music of the Sjjheres, 
see under Pythagoras in the large Chtss. Dirt. — in . . . souls. That 
therefore have answering chords ? — Mrs. Osgood's lines are worth quoting 
here: 

" And wheresoever, in his rich creation, 
Sweet music breathes, in wave, or bird, or soul, 
'T is but the faint and far reverberation 
Of that grand tune to which the planets roll! " 

See the first stanza of Dryden's Sonrj for St. Cecilia's Hay ; also Cicero's 
Somni'urn tScipionis. — G5. close in it. So the old editions. Rowe silently 
made the change to ' close it in,' and has heen generally followed. Rightly ? 
— What is referred to by 'it"? soul [Collier, Dyce, Furness] ? harmony ? — 
we cannot hear it. So Milton, Arcades, 72, 73; Conms, 248; At a Sol- 
emn Music, 20. — 6G. Diana, twin sister of Apollo, she representing the 
moon, as he the sun. See Class. Diet. — See line 109. — ()8. draw her 
home. " Shakespeare was, I believe, here thinking of the custom of 
accomjianying the last wagon-load, at the end of the harvest, with rustic 
music' ' Malone (whose real name was Maloney). ■ — 72. unhandled colts. 
' Unback'd colts,' Tempest, IV, i, 176. — 74. "which is, etc. Latinism? — 
77. make. For the omission of 'to,' see 11, vii, 43. — mutual = common 
[Clark and Wright] ? reciprocal? — The original sense is ' exchanged,' from 
Lat. mutuare, to change. SJicat. — Midsummer Nif/ht's Bream, IV, i, 114, 
and Troibis and Cressida, I, iii, 348. — 80. Orphipus. Henry VIII, III, 
i, 3-14; Two Gentlemen of Verona, III, ii, 78-81. — Son of Apollo and 
Calliope. His lyre, now placed among the stars, enchanted not only wild 
beasts, but the trees and rocks upon Olympus, so that they moved from 
their places to follow it. Under its influence the Argo moved down to the 



SCENE I.] THE MEnCHANT OF VENICE. 153 

Since nought so stockish, hard, and full of rage, 

But music for the time doth change his nature. 

The man that hath no music in himself, 

Nor is not mov'd with concord of sweet sounds, 

Is fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils ; 85 

The motions of his spirit are dull as night, 

And his affections dark as Erebus. 

Let no such man be trusted. — Mark the music. 

Enter Portia and Nerissa. 

Portia. That light we see is burning in my hall. 
How far that little candle throws his beams ! 90 

So shines a good deed in a naughty world. 

Nerissa. When the moon shone, we did not see the candle. 

Portia. So doth the greater glory dim the less : 
A substitute shines brightly as a king. 

Until a king be by ; and then his state 95 

Empties itself, as doth an inland brook 

sea, the moving rocks (Symplegades) which threatened to crusli the ship 
were kept in their places, and the dragon that guarded the golden fleece in 
Colchis was lulled to sleep. He was prominent in the Argonautic expedi- 
tion. See Class. Diet., also Pope's Ode for St. Ceeilia^s Day. The story is 
told in Shakespeare's favorite Latin author, Ovid, Books x, xi. Furness. 
— Is Shakespeare right in this estimate of the power of mvisic ? — 81. stock- 
ish, hard, and full of rage. Assign each of these epithets to its appro- 
priate subject ! As to such distribution of each to each, see our edition of 
Hamlet, III, i, 151; or our Macbeth, I, iii, 55, 5(5. — 84. nor is not. See 
I, ii, 23; III, iv, 11; IV, i, 54. — 85. spoils = acts of rapine [Clark and 
Wright] ? things violently taken from others? — Lat. spoliare, to despoil, 
to strip of booty ; spolium, spoil, booty, plunder. The sense of ' destroy ' 
has been transferred to 'spoil' from A. S. spillan, Mid. Eng. spillen, to 
destroy? — 86. "It may safely be laid down as a canon that the word 
' spirit ' in our old poets, whenever the metre does not compel us to pro- 
nounce it dissyllabically, is a monosyllable. And this is almost always the 
case." Walker {Critical Examination of the Text, etc., 1859). Shall we 
acquiesce in this? See lines 28, 228. — 8*7. Erebus. Julivs Csesar, II, i, 
84. "When night was thought to be a dark void svirrounding the earth, 
Erebus was thought of as a still more vast and dark realm surrounding 
that of night. . . . Another change in the application of the word made 
Erebus a dark region through which shades passed when, after death, they 
went down to the lower world. Hades." Scull. — Gr. epe^Sq, erebos, a place 
of nether darkness. Akin to epe/j-vo?, ereninos, black, dark. Liddell and 
Scott. — 88. Let no such man he trusted. Is this a fair conclusion ? 
See especially A Chapter on Ears in Lamb's Essays of Elia ; also the 
quotations in Furoiess. — Julius Csesar, I, ii, 200; "He (Cassius) hears no 
music." — 90, 91. ISTote the exquisite beauty of these two lines and the 
following dialogue. How gradual and graceful the transition from phi- 
losophy, music, and poetry to business ! — Matthew, v. 16. — For ' naughty,' 
see note on III, ii, 18 ; iii, 9. — 92-97. when the moon shone, etc. Rele- 



154 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act v. 

Into the main of waters. Music ! hark ! 

Nerissa. It is j^our music, madam, of the house. 

Portia. Nothing is good, I see, without respect : 
Methinks it sounds much sweeter tlian by day. loo 

Nerissa. Silence bestows that virtue on it, madam. 

Portia. The crow doth sing as sweetly as the lark 
When neither is attended ; and I think 
The nightingale, if she should sing by day, 
When every goose is cackling, would be thought 105 

No better a musician than the wren. 
How many things by season season'd are 
To their right praise and true perfection ! — 
Peace, how the moon sleeps with End3nnion, 

vancy of this passage? Logical sequence of the thought? — 94. For the 
ellipsis, see Abbott, 276. — 99. respect = regard, cousicleratiou, attention 
[Staunton] ? as modified l)y circumstances [Johnson] ? regard to circum- 
stances [Rolfe] ? relation to the circumstances [Clark and Wrigiit] ? regard 
or view [Craik] ? "The music sounds much better when there is nothing 
to distract or divert the attention." Hudson. Without rri<pect = except 
relatively [Meiklejohn] ? except hy comparison [White] ? — 103. attended 
= attended to [Clark and Wright, Schmidt, Halliwell, Staunton, Hudson, 
Rolfe, etc.] ? suitably accompanied? " I think ' attended ' is not, perhaps, 
equivalent to attended to, but may be used absolutely." Fvrness. — Is the 
statement true? Is the difference wholly in the hearer's mind ? or in the 
accompanying influences? — " The nightingale is reputed the first of song- 
sters, because she sings at the time when she can best be heard, when the 
hearer's attention is not distracted." Clark and Wright. Malone cites as 
a parallel passage, lines 5 to 12 in Shakespeare's 102d Sonnet. — "All the 
birds mentioned here are found in Italy." Rolfe. From this fact, and 
from the accurate knowledge elsewhere displayed of Italian matters, some 
critics have argued that Shakespeare had visited Italy. A fair inference ? 
— For the wren's note, see Midsummer Night's Dream, III, i, 117; 2 Henry 
VI, III, ii, 42. — 107. by season season'd are, etc. = by being rightly 
timed are tempered and made fit for their purpose ; hence relished. [Hud- 
son] ? by ripeness ripened [Clark and Wright]? "by fitness of occasion 
are adapted or qualified to obtain their just appreciation"? — 108. per- 
fection. Scan. I, i, 8, 139. — 109. Peace, how, etc. So all the old 
editions. Malone changed ' how ' to ' ho ! ' remarking, " The oddness of the 
lohrase, ' How the moon would not be awak'd ! ' first made me suspect the 
passage to be corrupt. . . . Portia first enjoins the music to cease, and then 
subjoins tlie reason for her injunction." He cites, 'Peace, ho, for shame,' 
from Romeo and Juliet, IV, v, 61, where Friar Lawrence tries to silence 
boisterous grief; also, from A.S You Like It, " Peace, ho, I bar confusion," 
and several other passages. Rolfe quotes from Jidius Csesar, I, ii, 1, where 
"Peace, ho," is used to silence the music. The majority of commentators 
adopt Malone's emendation. But why should Portia wish to stoj) the music, 
as if it disturbed the ' peace ' ? or was she ' not moved with concord of sweet 
sounds'? Was it of a sort to vKiJce the moonP We need not say with 
Knight that "Peace, ho," as a command for the music to cease, is ' a sin- 
gularly unladylike act on the part of Portia ' ; but we may be sure that 
Portia would rather prolong than shorten the melody she loved. Says 
Boswell, " The old reading, I think, is right. ' How,' as Johnson observes, 



SCENE I.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 155 

And would not be awak'd ! [_Music ceases. 

Lorenzo. That is the voice, HO 

Or I am much deceiv'd, of Portia. 

Portia. He knows me, as the blind man knows the cuckoo. 
By the bad voice. 

Lorenzo. Dear lad}^ welcome home. 

Portia. We have been praying for our husbands' welfare, 
Which speed, we hope, the better for our words. 115 

Are they return' d? 

Lorenzo. Madam, they are not yet; 

But there is come a messenger before. 
To signify their coming. 

Portia. Go in, Nerissa ; 

G-ive order to my servants that tliey take 
No note at all of our being absent hence ; 120 

Nor you, Lorenzo; Jessica, nor 3^ou. \_A tucket sounds. 

Lorenzo. Your husband is at hand ; I hear his trumpet. 
We are no tell-tales, madam ; fear you not. 

Portia. This night methinks is but the dajdight sick ; 
It looks a little paler : 't is a day, 125 

Such as the day is when the sun is hid. 

is sometimes used as a mere affirmation." Sliall we interpret thus : " How 
sweetly the moon sleeps with Endymion, and she has no wish to he awak- 
ened ! " Is not " Peace " meant to ask her and Nerissa to cease conversa- 
tion, and give music and silence full sway? — ^Is the moon obscured by 
passing clouds? — Endymion, a beautiful shepherd youth, son of Zens 
and the nymph Calyce. As he slept on Mount Latmos, in Caria, his 
surprising beauty warmed the cold heart of Selene (the Moon), Mdio came 
down to iiim, as Fletcher tells in his Faithful Shepherdess — 

" How the pale Phoebe [i.e., the moon-goddess], hunting in a grove, 
Fu"8t saw the boy Endymion, from whose eyes 
She took eternal fire that never dies [sicl ; 
How she conveyed him softly in a sleep. 
His temples bound with poppy, to the steep 
Head of old Latmos, where she stoops each night. 
Gilding the mountain with her brother's light. 
To kiss her sweetest." 

See Class. Diet. ; Bulfinch's Age of Fable ; Keats's Endymion ; Max 
Miiller's Essay on Comparative Mythology in Chips from a German Work- 
shop, ii, 78-84; and quotations in Furness. — 112, 113. as the blind man, 
etc. Allusion to some proverb ? — 114. welfare. The first quarto has 
health which Pope changed to healths. — 115. which speed. See note on 
'gold, who,' II, vii, 4; IV, i, 274. — 121. tucket = set of trumpet notes to 
annoimce an arrival? — Ital. toccare, to touch; toccata, a musical prelude; 
allied to Fr. toucher, to touch, and to Eng. tocsin {= touch-sign, ' sign ' 
being Lat. siqmnn ) 2 — Henry V, IV, ii, 35, has ' tueket-sonance ' = tucket. 
— 125. a little paler. Note the exquisite beauty of the thought and 
expression. What Italian ambassador told the king of England that the 



156 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [act v. 

Enter Bassanio, Antonio, Gratiano, and their 

followers. 

Bassanio. We should hold day with the Antipodes, 
If you would walk in absence of the sun. 

Portia. Let me give light, but let me not be light ; 
For a light wife doth make a heavy husband, 130 

And never be Bassanio so for me : 
But God sort all ! You are welcome home, my lord. 

Bassanio. I thank you, madam. Give welcome to my 
friend. 
This is the man, this is Antonio, 
To whom I am so infinitely bound. 135 

Portia. You should in all sense be much bound to him ; 
For, as I hear, he was much bound for you. 

Antonio. No more than I am well acquitted of. 

Portia. Sir, you are very welcome to our house : 
It must appear in other ways than words, 140 

Therefore I scant this breathing courtesy. 

Gratiano \_To Nerissa']. By yonder moon I swear you do 
me wrong ; 
In faith, I gave it to the judge's clerk. 

Portia. A quarrel, ho, already! what's the matter? 

Gratiano. About a hoop of gold, a paltry ring 145 

That she did give me, whose poesy was 

Italian moon was superior to liis Majesty's sun ? — White quotes in regard 
to the atmosphere and sky of England tlie saying, " In a fine day it is look- 
ing up a chimney ; in a foul day, looking down one," — 127. hold day = 
have day ? — Antipodes. Gr. avTlnoSeg, antipodes, men with ' feet opposite ' 
to us; avri, Opposite to, against; -n-oSe?, feet; ttov^, pous, foot, cognate with 
Eng. ' foot.' — 128. If you, etc. You are our sun ! I, i, 169 ! — 129. light. 
For this verbal play, so frequent in Shakespeare, see II, vi, 42 ; III, ii, 91 ; 
Love's Labor's Lost, V, ii, 25, 2(3; our edition of Macbeth, II, ii, 5(i, 57. — 
132. sort = dispose, order aright ? So in 2 Henry VI, II, iv, 68 ; Richard 
III, II, iii, 36. — Lat. sors, sortis, lot, destiny, condition; sortiri, to fix, 
assign, allot ; probably allied to serere, to connect, string together. — ' Sort ' 
is still so used in Scotland. — 136. sense = good sense? reason? feeling, 
sensibility? — Taming of the Shreio, V, ii, 141. — In Measure for Measure, 
V, i, 47, 'infirmity of sense' is said to mean 'infirmity of reason.' — We 
say colloquially, "There is no sense in such conduct." — 141. breathing 
courtesy. Macbeth, V, iii, 27, has, ' mouth-honor, breath.' Tirnon, III, 
V, 59. — 146. poesy (spelled also posij) = inscribed motto? Metrical foot 
omitted in this line ? Abbott, 508. — From 1550 to 1700 it was very common 
to have a motto inscribed on the inner side of a ring presented ; as ' Not 
two but one, till life is gone.' In Hamlet, III, ii, 135, we read of the three 
rhymed lines, " Is this a prologue or the posy of a ring? " See note in our 



SCENE I.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 157 

For all the world like cutler's poetry 

Upon a knife, ' Love me, and leave me not.' 

Nerissa. What talk you of the poesy, or the value? 
You swore to me, when I did give it 3'ou, 150 

That you would wear it till the hour of death. 
And that it should lie with you in your grave : 
Though not for me, yet for your vehement oaths, 
You should have been respective and have kept it. 
Gave it a judge's clerk ! but well I know, 155 

The clerk will ne'er wear hair on's face that had it. 

Gratiano. H^ will, an if he live to be a man. 

Nerissa. Ay, if a woman live to be a man. 

Gratiano. Now, by this hand, I gave it to a youth, 
A kind of boy, a little scrubbed boy, 160 

No higher than thyself, the judge's clerk, 
A prating boy, that begg'd it as a fee : 
I could not for my heart deny it him. 

Portia. You were to blame, I must be plain with you, 
To part so slightly with your wife's first gift ; I65 

A thing stuck on with oaths upon your finger. 
And so riveted with faith unto your flesh. 
I gave my love a ring, and made him swear 
Never to part with it ; and here he stands : 
I dare be sworn for him, he would not leave it, 170 



edition. — 147. cutler's poetry. By means of aqua-fortis, they used to 
inscribe short sentences on knives, swords, etc. — 149. what = why?—' 
Does the word indicate impatience as in " What do you prate of service " ? 
Coriolanus, III, iii, 83. — 151. the hour. Both quartos have your hour. 
Inf erior ? — 154. respective = respectful [Steevens, Malone. etc.] ? regard- 
ful [M. Mason, Clark and Wright, Rolfe, Hudson, etc.] ? mindful [Furness] ? 
— In Romeo and Jidiet, III, i, 120, 'respective levity' =cool, considerate 
gentleness. — I, i, 74; King John, I, i, 188. — 155. But well I know. 
These words are substituted in the folios for " No, God's my judge" in the 
two quartos. Why? See on I, ii, 96. — 156. on's. Is such contraction 
allowable now? — 160. scrubbed = dwarfish and unkempt [White, Rolfe, 
etc.] ? stunted in growth, like ' scrub ' or brushwood [Clark and Wright, 
Hudson, etc.] ? — Cotgrave's French and English nictionary (1660) has, 
" Marpaut. An ill-favored scrub, a little ouglie or swartie wretch." Coles's 
Latin and English Dictionary translates ' scrubbed ' by Lat. squalidns 
(dirty). — Norweg. skrubba, the dwarf cornel-tree, answering to Eng. shrub, 
A. S. scrobb, a shrub. . . . The original scrubbing-brush was a branch of 
a shrub. Mid. Eng. shrob, schrub, a low, dwarf tree. Skeat. —We speak 
of the ' scrub oak.' — Warton would substitute 'stubbed,' being convinced 
that " Gratiano does not speak contemptuously of the judge's clerk." But 
Gratiano is, for the moment, 'mad' (as 'mad' is used in line 174, and in 
the United States), and disposed to express himself ?— 162. prating. 
What ground for this epithet ? — 167. so riveted. Pope omitted 'so,' 



158 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [aCT v. 

Nor pluck it from his finger, for the wealth 
That the world masters. Now, in faith, Gratiano, 
You give 3'our wife too unkind a cause of grief ; 
And 't were to me, I should be mad at it. 

Bassanio. [^Aside.'] Why, I were best to cut m3' left hand off, 
And swear I lost the ring defending it. 176 

Gratiano. My lord Bassanio gave his ring awa}' 
Unto the judge that begg'd it, and indeed 
Deserv'd it too : and then the boy, his clerk, 
That took some pains in writing, he begg'd mine ; iso 

And neither man nor master would take aught 
But the two rings. 

Portia. What ring gave you, my lord? 

Not that, I hope, which you receiv'd of me. 

Bassanio. If I could add a lie unto a fault, 
I would deny it ; but you see my finger 185 

Hath not the ring upon it ; it is gone. 

Portia. Even so void is your false heart of truth. 

Bassanio. Sweet Portia, 190 

If you did know to whom I gave the ring. 
If you did know for whom I gave the ring, 
And would conceive for what I gave the ring, 
And how unwillingly I left the ring, 

When nought would be accepted but the ring, 195 

You would abate the strength of your displeasure. 

Portia. If you had known the virtue of the ring. 
Or half her worthiness that gave the ring, 
Or your own honor to contain the ring. 



Rightly? Furness regards 'rivet' as 'almost, if not quite, a monosyl- 
lable.' See on 'having,' III, ii, 124; IV, i, 262. — 173. a cause. Sidney 
Walker would omit ' a.' So Furness. Judiciously? ^46&o«,462. — 174. And. 
So all the old editions. Needlessly changed to ' An ' by Theobald, etc. II, 
ii, 51. — 175. I were best. See II, viii, 33, and Julius Csesar, III, iii, 12, 
where we have "you were best." Such phrases represent an old imper- 
sonal idiom, in which the pronoun was in the dative case, as "him were 
better " = it would be better /o?- him ; "you were best " = it were best /or 
you. But a feeling of incongruity, as if the idiom were ungrammatical, 
gave rise to a personal construction in place of the impersonal. See Abbott, 
352. See note on I, iii, 27. — 191. ring . . . ring, etc. Similar jingling 
groups of lines are not uncommon. King John, III, i, 12-15 ; Richard III, 
I, iii, 292-294; Comechj of Errors, I, ii, 89, 90. — 197. the virtue of the 
ring. See III, ii, 171. The use of rings as symbols of right or authority, as 
well as the ascription of virtue or magic power to them, is of very ancient 
origin. See Genesis, xli, 42 ; Esther, iii, 10, 12 ; Chaucer's Squiei-'s tale, lines 
138-147, etc., referred to in Milton's II Penseroso, 113 ; Scott's Lady of the 



SCENE I.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 159 

You would not then have parted with the ring. 200 

What man is there so much unreasonable, 

If you had pleas'd to have defended it 

With any terms of zeal, wanted the modesty 

To urge the thing held as a ceremony? 

Nerissa teaches me what to believe ; 205 

I '11 die for 't but some woman had the ring. 

Bassanio. No, by my honor, madam, by my soul, 
No woman had it, l3ut a civil doctor. 
Which did refuse three thousand ducats of me. 
And begg'd the ring — the which I did deny him, 210 

And suffer'd him to go displeas'd away — 
Even he that had held up the very life 
Of my dear friend. What should I say, sweet lady? 
I was enforc'd to send it after him ; 

I was beset with shame and courtesy ; 215 

My honor would not let ingratitude 

Lake, canto iv, stanza 19, and canto vi, stanzas 27, 28, 29; Brewer's 
Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, and Brewer's JReader's Handbook. — 
199. contain. Lat. con, completely; tenere, to hold; continere, to keep 
fast hold of, retain. Often so in Shakespeare. Bacon, Essay Ivii, says, 
' to contain anger from mischief,' etc. ; where, as sometimes in Shakespeare, 
it means restrain. — 202. you had pleased to have defended it. The 
you is dative or indirect object of ' had pleased ' ? or subject nom. ? See 
note on line 175, and II, viii, 33. — Such a ' double perfect ' as ' had pleased 
to have defended ' is regarded by most grammarians as indefensible now. 
It was used after verbs of hoping, intending, trusting, etc., and implies that 
what was hoped, intended, etc., did not occur. Abbott, 360. — much un- 
reasonable. Shakespeare has also much forgetful, much sea-sick, much 
uyilike, etc. — 203. wanted = as to have wanted? — "The Elizabethan 
authors objected to scarcely any ellipsis, provided the deficiency could be 
easily supplied from the context." Abbott, 382. — 204. urge = insist upon 
(receiving)? — ceremony^ a thing consecrated [Clark and Wright]? a 
sacred thing [Rolfe, Schmidt] ? — Jxilius Csesar, I, i, 65. —Lat. cxremonia, 
an outward rite ; Sans, karman, work, a religious action, a rite ; from 
v^KAR, to do, make. — Metonymy? — "In Hakiuyt's Voyages, quoted by 
Richardson, a crucifix is called a ' ceremony.' " — In an elaborate paper in 
Shalcespeariana, January, 1884, Mr. John G. R. McElroy states that ' cere- 
mony,' or some derivative of the word, is used by Shakespeare 31 times 
in the sense of external form or outward rite ; once as ' a visible sign of 
anything that may also find expression in an outward rite ' ; 10 times in 
the sense of ' the outward forms of state (including the festal ornaments 
on Caesar's images) '; and twice in the sense of 'signs, prodigies, and the 
like superstitions.' — 208. civil = courteous ? complaisant? of the civil 
law ? The commentators prefer the last explanation of ' civil ' ; but see 
lines 201, 203, in which incivility is imputed. — 212. had held up. So the 
second quarto and the folios. The first quarto has 'did uphold,' which 
Pope, Rolfe, Clark and Wright, and Hudson prefer. Choose! — 214. en- 
forc'd by Antonio [Allen] ? by a sense of honor and a feeling of gratitude ? 
— 215. shame and courtesy = shame of discourtesy [Hudson] ? — Hen- 



160 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. [ACT V. 

So much besmear it. Pardon me, good lady ; 

And b}' these blessed candles of the night, 

Had yon been there, I think yon would have begg'd 

The ring of me to give the worthy doctor. 220 

Portia. Let not that doctor e'er come near my house. 
Since he hath got the jewel that I loved, 
And that which you did swear to keep for me, 
I will become as liberal as 3'ou ; 
I '11 not deny him any thing I have. "225 

Antonio. I am th' unhappy subject of these quarrels. 

Portia. Sir, grieve not you ; you are welcome notwith- 
standing. 

Bassanio. Portia, forgive me this enforced wrong ; 
And, in the hearing of these many friends, 
I swear to thee, even by thine own fair eyes, 230 

Wherein I see myself — 

Portia. Mark you but that ! 

In both my eyes he doubly sees himself ; 
In each eye, one : — swear by j^our double self, 
And there 's an oath of credit. 

Bassanio. Nay, but hear me ; 

Pardon this fault, and by m}' soul I swear 235 

I never more will break an oath with thee. 

Antonio. I once did lend my body for his wealth ; 
Which, but for him that had 3^our husband's ring, 



diadys? — 218, and by. So the folios. The quartos have 'For by.' Pref- 
erable? — candles. Shakespeare repeatedly calls the stars 'candles,' as 
in Sonnet xxi, 12; Macbeth, II, i, 5; Romeo and Juliet, III, v, 9. Milton 
calls them 'lamps,' in Comus, 198. Fairfax's tran,slation of Tasso (1600) 
has ' heaven's small candles.' — 228. enforced. Scan. See on line 28. — 
233. double = twofold ? deceitf ul ? — " With flattering lips and with a 
double heart do they speak." Psalms, xii, 2. — Lat. duo, two; -jylus, re- 
lated to plenus, full; duplus, literally twice-full. — So we say 'two-sided,' 
'double-dealing,' 'double-tongued' (Lat. bilinguis), etc. — 237. his. The 
folios have 'thy'; the quartos, 'his.' — wealth. An extended form of 
'weal' (Mid. Eng. loele), by help of the suffix -f/i, denoting condition or 
state, as health from heal, dearth from deai^, etc. Skeat. This suf&x -th 
or -t (as in height from high ), when the word was formed from an adjec- 
tive, originally denoted the abstract quality. When the word was formed 
from a verb, it denoted primarily the action taken abstractly. Tlie original 
Towel is attenuated or shortened, except when an original consonant vocal- 
izes and unites with the preceding vowel to make it long. So stealth from 
steal, ruth from rue, depth from cZeep, etc. See Gibbs's Teut. Etym., 85, 
86, 87. — In the Litany of the Church of England, as also in the prayer for 
the Queen, ' wealth ' is used for ' prosperity.' — 238. which = which loan ? 
which body ? Is the use of ' which ' for an antecedent clause, to be favored ? 



SCENE I.] THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 161 

Had quite miscarried ; I dare be bound again, 

My soul upou the forfeit, that your lord 240 

Will never more break faith advisedly. 

Portia. Then you shall be his surety. Give him this, 
And bid him keep it better than the other. 

Antonio. Here, lord Bassanio : swear to keep this ring. 

Bassanio. By heaven, it is the same I gave the doctor ! 245 

Portia. You are all amaz'd : 
Here is a letter : read it at your leisure ; 
It comes from Padua, from Bellario. 
There you shall find that Portia was the doctor, 
Nerissa there her clerk : Lorenzo here 250 

Shall witness I set forth as soon as you, 
And even but now return'd ; I have not yet 
Enter'd my house. — Antonio, you are welcome ; 
And I have better news in store for you 

Than you expect: unseal this letter soon; 255 

There you shall find, three of your argosies 
Are richly come to harbor suddenly. 
You shall not know by what strange accident 
I chanced on this letter. 

Antonio. Sweet lady, you have given me life and living; 260 
For here I read for certain that my ships 
Are safely come to road. 

Portia. How now, Lorenzo? 

My clerk hath some good comforts too for you. 

Nerissa. Ay, and I '11 give them him without a fee. — 
There do I give to you and Jessica, 265 

From the rich Jew, a special deed of gift. 
After his death, of all he dies possess'd of. 

Lorenzo. Fair ladies, you drop manna in the way 
Of starved people. 

Portia. It is almost morning. 

And yet I am sure you are not satisfied 270 



— 239. miscarried. As in II, viii, 29; IIT, ii, 310, 311; Tivelfth Night, 
III, iv, 61 ; 2 Henrij IV, IV, i, 129. — 240. soul. Note the strong antithesis. 

— 241. advisedly. I, i, 142; II, i, 42; IV, ii, 6.-257. richly = richly 
laden? in a rich manner? — I, i, 161. See on 'ceremoniously,' line 37. — 
suddenly = unexpectedly ? In the Litany petition, " From battle, murder, 
and from sudden death. Good Lord, deliver us," the word 'sudden' is 
said to mean also ' unprepared-for.' — 260. living. Ill, ii, 156. — 262. road. 
I, i, 19.-268. manna. Exodus, xvi, 14, 31; John, vi, 31, 49.-269. 
starved. Where had their money gone, and their jewels ? See II, iv, 31 ; 



162 THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 

Of these events at full. Let us go in ; 

And charge ns there upon inter'gatories, 

And we will answer all things faithfully. \_ExeAi7it. 

vi, 49, 50; III, i, 68, 71, 92, 99. — 270. satisfied of ... at full = fully 

informed of [Meiklejohn] ? satisfied fully concerning [Rolfe] ? Allen sug- 
gests and Furness favors interpreting these words as a confusion of two 
constructions, thus : You are not satisfied [but would like to know of these 
events] at full. As to ' of,' Abbott, 173, 174, gives many examples in Shake- 
speare of the word meaning ' as regards,' ' concerning,' ' about.' — 272. in- 
ter'gatories. '• In the Court of Queeii's Bench, when a complaint is made 
against a person for a 'contempt,' the practice is that before sentence is 
finally pronounced, he is sent into the Crown Oflice, and being there 
' charged upon interrogatories,' he is made to swear that he Avill ' answer 
all things faithfully.' " bhakespeare'' s Legal Acquirements, by Lord Chan- 
cellor Campbell. — The word is printed inter (laiories in the early editions, 
as in AWs Well That Ends Well, IV, iii, 1()8. The uncontmcted form 
occurs in Kinfj John, III, i, 147. ^Lat. inter, thoroughly; rof/are, to ask; 
interrofjdre, to question. — What need of this last act in the drama? What 
lessons does it teach? The educational power of music? Show whether 
the act illustrates IMorley's proposition that " man's endeavor to establish 
the kingdom of heaven witliin him shines royally till it has blended with, 
and is lost in, the supreme glories of eternal love." — What characters, if 
any, might be omitted in the ijlay without serious loss? What scene or 
scenes ?" What character is most vividly pictured ? What is Shylock's 
strongest motive ? — In the last scene, lines 58-f)5 are spoken of by Hallam 
as "the most sublime passage, perhaps, in Shakespeare." Analyze them 
and comment upon them. — Lines 25(5-259 are censured by Eccles (1805) as 
' a most lame, awkward, and inartificial expedient.' May they be inter= 
preted as evincing Portia's vigilance and painstaking? 



APPENDIX. 



HOW TO STUDY ENGLISH LITERATURE. 

[From George H. Martin, Agent of the Mass. Board of Education.'] 

What is wanted is a carefully graded course, which, beginning 
with the poetry of action, should lead the student step by step to 
the sentimental and the reflective, all in their simplest forms, thence 
through the more elaborate narrative to the epic and the dramatic. 
The aim here is not to teach authors or works, but poetry; and the 
works are selected for their value as illustrations , without reference 
to their authors. A parallel course in the study of prose should be 
pursued with the same end. Then, having learned what poetry is 
and what prose is, what they contain and how to And their contents, 
the pupils would be prepared to take up the study of individual 
authors. Having studied the authors, the final step would be to 
study the history of the literature, in which the relation of the 
authors to each other and to their times would appear. This would 
place the study of literature on a scientific basis, — first elementary 
ideas, then individual wholes, then relations and classifications. 

[^From an address by L. R. Williston, A.M., Supervisor of Public 

Schools, Boston.] 

How shall the teacher bring his pupils best to see and feel the 
thoughts of his author as he saw and felt them? 

First, Read the work carefully with them. Let the teacher read, 
and question as he reads. Let him often ask for paraphrases, and 
draw out in every way the thought of his class, making sure that 
all is clear. Let every impression have a corresponding expression, 
which shall re-act, and deepen the impression. 

Second, When a part of the work, an act, book, or canto, has 
been carefully read, assign a theme for a written essay. Let the 
class tell what the poet has attempted, how he has succeeded, what 
are the impressions made by the characters, scenes, and descriptions. 

Let the teacher himself write upon the themes assigned to his 
class, and thus give them a model of what he wishes them to do. 

Third, When the book or play has been carefully read and studied 
in this way in all its parts, let it be re-read in a larger and freer way 
than before. Let the pupils read, and the teacher watch to see if 
the thought is clearly apprehended by the pupil. Let the fine pas- 
sages be read again and again by difierent members of the class, 
and their rendering be criticised by class and teacher. If the work 



164 APPENDIX. 

read be a play, let the parts be taken by clifFerent members of the 
class. Let all the parts of the work now be studied in their rela- 
tion to each other and to the whole. Essays now should be written 
upon subjects suggested by this more comprehensive study of the 
work, — a comparison of characters, noteworthy scenes and their 
bearing upon the whole, the style of the author, and his skill in 
description, dramatic presentation, or invention. 

If it is objected that it is impossible for a teacher with a large 
class to revise and correct such a mass of written work, I answer 
that it is not to be expected that all the written work of a class 
should be read and carefully corrected by the teacher. Let him criti- 
cise, or rather call upon his class to do so, what is noticeably wrong 
in the essays as they are read. In these exercises, let the attention 
be directed chiefly to the thought. Let thought govern and direct 
expression. From time to time, according to the number of his 
class and the teacher's ability, let him assign essays to be carefully 
written and handed in for his own careful reading and criticism. 
But let there be an abundance of free and rapid writing, that compo- 
sition, that is, thought put into writing, may become easy and natural. 
The object of the writing is not to teach the correct use of English, 
so much as to make clear thinkers and to fix and deepen impressions. 

Fourth, With the careful reading and study of some book in 
school, I think it important that there should go the reading of 
some other book out of school. Flowers are not all to be picked 
and analyzed, but are to be enjoyed as they are seen by "him who 
runs." " Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, 
some few to be chewed and digested." Let the pupil have his exer- 
cise in merely " tasting" books, with enjoyment as the chief end. 
Let the teacher be his guide, and merely ask him to report what he 
finds. In other words, let him read, as we all read when we read 
for pleasure, — with his mind at ease and open to every charm that 
genius can present. Let the teacher make the book the subject of 
conversation with his class, and draw their attention by his questions 
to the chief points which make it noteworthy. 

To what extent shall the memory be called upon in the study of 
English literature? Not, I think, to commit long passages, whole 
books, and cantos of poems. Let the pupil absorb as much as pos- 
sible in frequent reading and in study. Now and then, let a few 
striking lines, that have been learned by heart rather than committed 
to memory, be recited. Do not make a disagreeable task of any 
such exercise. For, that our pupils may receive the highest and 
best influence from this study of English literature, it is essential 
that they love it, and retain only pleasant memories of the hours 
spent at school in the society of its best authors. 

\^From J. M. Buchan, Inspector of High Schools, Ontario, Canada; 
quoted in BlaisdelVs " Outline Studies in English Classics," a 
loork that should be in the hands of every teacher of our literature.'\ 

With all classes of pupils alike, the main thing to ])e aimed at 
by the teacher is to lead them clearly and fully to understand the 



APPENDIX. 165 

meaning of the author they are reading, and to appreciate the 
beauty, the nobleness, the justness, or the sublimity of his thoughts 
and language. Parsing, the analysis of sentences, the derivation 
of words, the explanation of allusions, the scansion of verse, the 
pointing-out of figures of speech, the hundred and one minor 
matters on which the teacher may easily dissipate the attention of 
the pupil, should be strictly subordinated to this great aim. ... It 
is essential that the mind of the reader should be put en rapport 
with that of the writer. There is something in the influence of a 
great soul upon another, which defles analysis. No analysis of a 
poem, however subtle, can produce the same effect upon the mind 
and heart as the reading of the poem itself. 

Though the works of Shakespeare and Milton and our other great 
writers were not intended by their authors to serve as text-books 
for future generations, yet it is unquestionably the case that a large 
amount of information may be imparted, and a very valuable train- 
ing given, if we deal with them as we deal with Homer and Horace 
inour best schools. Parsing, grammatical analysis, the derivation 
of words, prosody, composition, the history of the language, and 
to a certain extent the history of the i*ace, may be both more pleas- 
antly and more profitably taught in this than in any other way. It 
is advisable for these reasons, also, that the study of these subjects 
should be conjoined with that of the English literature. Not only 
may time be thus economized, but the difficulty of fixing the attention 
of flighty and inappreciative pupils may more easily be overcome. 

[^From F. G. Fleaifs " Guide to Chaucer and Spenser."'] 

No doubtful critical point should ever be set before the student 
as ascertained. One great advantage of these studies is the acquire- 
ment of a power of forming a judgment in cases of conflicting 
evidence. Give the student the evidence; state your own opinion, 
if you like, but let him judge for himself. 

No extracts or incomplete works should be used. The capability 
of appreciating a whole work, as a whole, is one of the principal 
aims in aesthetic culture. 

It is better to read thoroughly one simple play or poem than to 
know details about all the dramatists and poets. The former trains 
the brain to judge of other plays or poems ; the latter only loads 
the memory with details that can at any time be found, when 
required, in books of reference. 

For these studies to completely succeed, they must be as thorough 
as our classical studies used to be. No difficult point in syntax, 
prosody, accidence, or pronunciation ; no variation in manners or 
customs; no historical or geographical allusion, — must be passed 
over without explanation. This training in exactness will not inter- 
fere with, but aid, the higher aims of literary training. 

{^From Rev. Henry N. Hudson, Shakespearian Editor.] 

I have never had and never will have anything but simple exer- 
cises ; the pupils reading the author under the teacher's direction, 



166 APPENDIX. 

correction, and explanation; the teacher not even requiring, though 
usuallj'^ advising, them to read over the matter in advance. Thus it 
is a joint communing of teaclier and pupils with the author for the 
time being; just that, and nothing more. Nor, assuredly, can such 
communion, in so far as it is genial and free, be without substantial 
and lasting good, — far better, indeed, than any possible cramming 
of mouth and memory for recitation. The one thing needful here 
is, that the pupils rightly understand and feel Avhat they read; this 
secured, all the rest will take care of itself. 

\_From Dr. Johnson, 1765.] 

Let him that is yet unacquainted Avith the powers of Shakespeare, 
and who desires to feel the greatest pleasure that the drama can 
give, read every plaj^ from the tirst scene to the last, with utter 
negligence to all his commentators. When his fancy is once on the 
wing, let it not stoop at correction or explanation. Let him read 
on through brightness and obscurity, through integrity and corrup- 
tion ; let him preserve his comprehension of the dialogue, and his 
interest in the fable. And when the pleasures of novelty have 
ceased, let him attempt exactness, and read the commentators. 

\_From Professor Brainerd Kellogg. 1^ 

The student ought, first of all, to read the play as a pleasure; 
then to read over again, Avith his mind upon the characters and the 
plot; and, lastly, to read it for the meanings, grammar, etc. 

1. The Plot and Story of the Play. 

(a) The general plot ; 
{]/) The special incidents. 

2. The Characters : Ability to give a connected account of all that 

is done and most of what is said by each character in the 
play. 

3. The Influence and Interplay of the Characters upon each 

other. 

{a) Relation of A to B, and of B to A ; 
(h) Relation of A to C and D. 

4. Complete Possession of the Language. 

(a) Meanings of words ; 

(6) Use of old words, or of words in an old meaning; 

(c) Grammar ; 

(d) Ability to quote lines to illustrate a grammatical point. 

5. Pow^er to Reproduce, or Quote. 

(a) What was said by A or B on a particular occasion ; 
ip) What was said by A in reply to B ; 
(c) What argument was used by C at a particular juncture; 
Id) To quote a line in instance of an idiom or of a peculiar 
meaning. 



APPENDIX. 167 

6. Pow^er to Locate. 

(a) To attribute a line or statement to a certain person on 

a certain occasion ; 
(h) To cap aline; 
(c) To fill in the right word or epithet. 

IFrom BlaisdelVs " Outlines for the Study of English Classics^'] 

The following summary of points to be exacted . . . may prove 
useful : — 
I. — Points relative to substance. 

1. A general Imowledge of the purport of the passages, and 

line of argument pursued. 

2. An exact paraphrase of parts of the whole, producmg ex- 

actly and at length the author's meaning. 

3. The force and character of epithets. 

4. The meaning of similes, and expansions of metaphors. • 

5. The exact meaning of individual words. 

Il\ _ Points with regard to form. 

1. General grammar rules ; if necessary, peculiarities of Eng- 

lish grammar. 

2. Derivations : (1) General laws and principles of deriva- 

tions, including a knowledge of affixes and suffixes. (2) 
Interesting historical derivation of particular words. 

III. — The knowledge of all allusions. 

IV. — A knowledge of such parallel passages and illustrations 

as the teacher has supplied. 

\_From Professor Wm. Taylor Thorn, 188.3.] 

To understand Shakespeare, we must understand his medium of 
thought, his language, as thoroughly as possible. For this, study 
is necessary ; and one notable advantage of the thorough study of 
this medium is that the student becomes unconsciously more or less 
imbued with Shakespeare's turn of thought while observing his 

turn of phrase. ... ^ i • i + 

For the class-room, a non-esthetic, preliminary study is best. 
And this may be accomplished in the following way : By studying 
carefully the Text, — the words themselves and their forms ; then- 
philological content, so far as such content is essential to the 
thought; and the grammatical differences of usage, then and now; 
by observing accurately the point of view of life {Weltanscliauung) 
historically and otherwise, as shown in the text ; by taking what 
may be called the actor's view of the personages of the play ; and, 
finally, by a sober and discriminating aesthetic discussion ot the 
characters, of the principles represented by those characters, and 
of the play in its parts and as a whole. 



168 APPENDIX. 

I. With regard to the words thonseU-es and their forms : There is 
no doubt that Shakespeare's Avords and word-combinations need 
constant and careful explanation in order for the pupil to seize the 
thought accurately or even approximately. Here, as elsewhere, 
Coleridge's dictum remains true : "In order to get the full sense 
of a word, we should first present to our minds the visual image 
that forms its primary meaning." . . . 

II. But this does not exhaust the interest of the words them- 
selves. They are frequently so full of a particular use and meaning 
of tlieir own that they have evidently been chosen by Shakespeare 
on that account, and can only serve fully their purpose of conveying 
liis meaning when themselves comprehended. This opens up to the 
pupil one of the most interesting aspects of words, — their function 
of embalming the ideas and habits of a past generation, thus giving 
little photographic views, as it were, of the course of the national 
life. Thus, a new element of interest and weird reality is added 
when we find that " And like a rat ivithont a tail " is not stuffed into 
the witch-speech in Macbeth merely for rhyme's sake (Mac. I, iii, D). 
•It is doubtful if anything brings so visibly before the mind's eye 
the age, and therefore the proper point of view, of Shakespeare as 
the accurate following-out of these implied views of life, these 
old popular beliefs contained in his picturesque language. . . . 

III. Difiicultics consisting in the forms of words have been 
already mentioned ; but they constitute in reality onl}^ a part, per- 
haps the least part, of the grammntical impediment to our appre- 
hending Shakespeare clearly. There is in him a splendid superiority 
to what we call grammar which entails upon us more or less of 
close, critical observation of his word-order, if we would seize the 
very thought. Thus Lady Macbeth speaks of Macbeth's "flaws 
and starts "as "impostors to true fear" (III, iv, 64). Here, if 
we understand "to" in its ordinary meaning, we lose entirely the 
flue force of its use by Shakespeare, " compared to true fear," and 
fail to see how subtly Lady Macbeth is trying to persuade Macbeth 
that there is no cause for fear, that he is not truly " afeard," but 
merely hysterical and unbalanced; and, failing in that, Ave fail in 
part to realize tlie prodigious nerve and force she was herself dis- 
playing, though vainly, for Macbeth's sake. So, too, a fcAV lines 
farther on, Macbeth's flue saying, " Ere humane statute purged tlie 
r/entJe weal," becomes flner when Ave see that " gentle " means for 
US " gentled," or " and made it gentle" (III, iv, 70). But for the 
apprehension of such, to us, uuAvonted poAvers in our noble mother 
tongue, Ave must study : loork, that is the Avord for it. We appre- 
ciate Shakespeare, as we do other things, Avhen he has cost us 
something. . . . 

IV. With such preliminary and coincident study, the pupil pre- 
pares herself for that Avider sweep of vision called for by the views 
of life and of the universe expressed or implied by the dramatis 
personcti themselves. The habit of mind thus acquired enables 
her to comprehend quickly the notions of God, of life, of creation 
{Weltanschainimi) found in ante-protestant times; and she is ready 
to sympathize Avith humanity, no matter as to age, or race, or 
clime. . . . 



APPENDIX. 169 

V. Another prolific source of the realization of Shakespeare's 
conception is obtained by suggesting the actor's vieia to the pnpil. 
There is much quickening of sympathy in representing to oijrselves 
the look, the posture, emphasis, of the character who speaks. The 
same words have a totally difterent force according as they are pro- 
nounced ; and it is like a revelation to a pupil sometimes to learn 
thqtt a speech, or even a word, was uttered thus and not so. . . . 

VT. Now, all this is preliminary work and should lead up to the 
custhp.tic appreciation of Shakespeare's characters ; and to that end, 
real conceptions, right or wrong, are essential. Let it be distinctly 
understood: all study of words, of grammatical construction, of 
views of life peculiar to an age past, of bodily posture and gesture, 
— all are the preparation for the study of the characters themselves ; 
that is, of the play itself; that is, 6f what Mr. Hudson calls the 
" Shakespeare of Shakespeare." If the student does not rise to 
this view of Shakespeare, she had l)etter let Shakespeare alone and 
go at something else. In studying the lives of such men as Hamlet 
or Lear, and of such women as Lady Macbeth or Cordelia, it is of the 
utmost consequence that the attention of the pupil be so directed 
to their deeds and words, their expression and demonstration of 
feeling, — to the things, further, which they omit to say or do, — as 
to make the conception of personality as strong as possible. . . . 

For a class of boys or girls, I hold that the most effectual and 
rapid and profitable method of studying Shakespeare is for them 
to learn one play as thoroughly as their teacher can make them do 
it. Then they can read other plays with a profit and a pleasure 
unknown and unknowable, without such a previous drill and study. 

Applying now these principles, if such they can be called, my 
method of work is this. One of the plays is selected, and after 
some brief introductory matter, the class begins to study. Each 
pupil reads in turn a number of lines, and then is expected to give 
such explanations of the text as are to be found in the notes, sup- 
plemented by her own knowledge. She has pointed out to her such 
other matters also as may be of interest and are relevant to the text. 

When the play has been finished or when any character disap- 
pears from the play, — as Polonius in Hamlet, J^nncan in 3Iacbeth, 
the Fool in Kmg Lear, — the class have all those passages in the 
])lay pointed out to them wherein this character appears or mention 
1-j made of him; and then, with this, Shakespeare's, biography of 
him before their eyes, they are required to write a composition — 
bane of pupils, most useful of teachers' auxiliaries — on this char- 
acter, without other aesthetic assistance or hints than they may have 
gathered from the teacher in the course of their study. This is to 
be their work, and to express their opinions of the man or the 
woman under discussion, and is to show how far they have suc- 
ceeded in retaining their thoughts and impressions concerning the 
character, and how far they wish to modify them under this review. 
They are thus compelled to realize what they do and do not think ; 
what they do and do not know ; in how far the character does or 
does not meet their approval, and why. That is, the pupils are 
compelled to pass judgment upon themselves along with the 
Shakespeare character. . . . 



170 APPENDIX. 

IFrom Prof. J. M. D. Meihlejolin's " General Notice" 1879.] 

. . . Tlie first purpose in this elaborate annotation is, of course, 
the full working out of Shakespeare's meaning. . . . This thorough 
excavation of the meaning of a really profound thinker is one of 
the very best kinds of training that a boy or girl can receive at 
school. . . . And always new rewards come to the careful reader — 
in the shape of new meanings, recognition of thoughts he had 
before missed, of relations between the characters that had hither- 
to escaped him. ... It is probable that, for those pupils wiio do 
not study either Greek or Latin, this close examination of every 
word and phrase in the text of Shakespeare will be the best substi- 
tute that can be found for the study of the ancient classics. 

It were much to be hoped that Shakespeare should l)ecome more 
and more of a study, and that every boy and girl should have a 
thorough knowledge of at least one play of Shakespeare before 
leaving school. It w^ould be one of the best lessons in human life, 
without the chance of a polluting or degrading experience. It 
would also have the eftect of bringing back into the too pale and 
formal English of modern times a large number of pithy and vigor- 
ous phrases, which would help to develop as well as to reflect 
vigor in the characters of the readers. Shakespeare used the 
Engiisli language with more power than any other writer that ever 
lived — he made it do more and say more than it had ever done ; he 
made it speak in a more original way; and his combinations of 
words are perpetual provocations and invitations to originality and 
to newness of insight. 



From all that has been quoted from the foregoing authorities, it 
may justly be inferred that somehow or other the pupil must be 
made to feel an interest in the author, to admire what is admirable 
in the composition, and really to enjoy its study. Secure this, and 
all else will follow as a matter of course : fail in this, and the time 
is wasted. 

The following suggestions,! or some of them, may be helpful in 
daily class-AVork : — 

1. At the beginning of the exercise, or as often as need be, require 

a statement of — 

(rt) The main object of the author in the whole poem, ora- 
tion, play, or other production of which to-day's lesson is a 
part. 

(6) The object of the author in this particular canto, chap- 
ter, act, or other division of the main work. 

2. Read or recite from memory (or have the pupils do it) the finest 

part or parts of the last lesson. The elocutionary talent of 
the class should be utilized here, so that the author may appear 
at his best. 

1 See Suggestions to Teachers, in Sprague's edition of the First Two Books of 
Paradise Lost and Lycidas. 



APPENDIX, 171 

B. Eequire at times (often enoiigii to keep the whole fresh in mem- 
ory) a resume of the ' argnment,' story, or succession of 
topics, up to the present lesson. 

4. Have the student read aloud the sentence, paragraph, or lines, 

now (or previously) assigned. The appointed portion should 
have some unity. 

5. Let the student interpret exactly the meaning by substituting 

his own words : explain peculiarities. This paraphrase should 
often be in loriting. 

6. Let him state the immediate object of the author in these lines. 

Is this object relevant? important? appropriate in this place? 

7. Let him point out the ingredients (particular thoughts) that 

malte up the passage. Are they in good taste ? just? natural? 
well arranged? 

8. Let him point out other merits or defects, — anything note- 

worthy as regards nobleness of principle or sentiment, grace, 
delicacy, beauty, rhythm, sublimity, wit, wisdom, humor, na- 
'ivete, kindliness, pathos, energy, concentrated truth, logical 
force, originality; give allusions, kindred passages, principles 
illustrated, etc. 

The choicest passages may be made the basis of language lessons 
and of rhetorical drill. For example, a pupil might be required to 
master thoroughly the first fourteen lines, and then to prepare an 
oral or written exercise upon them, somewhat as follows : — 

1. Memorize the passage and recite it with proper voice and ex- 
pression. 

2. (a) Explain any unusual or difficult words and sentences. 
(&) Translate the passages into equivalent English. 

(c) Point out its merits and defects, quoting parallel passages. 
Call for criticisms by the class. 

The pupil proceeds, imperfectly of course, somewhat like this : — 

(a) ''Sooth is an Anglo-Saxon word meaning truth. We recog- 
nize it in the compounds soothsayer, forsooth. It is now somewhat 
antiquated. Came hij is a colloquial expression equivalent to got. 
Stuff is familiarly used for material. Shakespeare says in the Tem- 
pest, ' We are such stuff as dreams are made on.' Want-ioit, now 
obsolete, means one who wants tmi, which unt in its old sense was 
the same as understanding. In ocean we recognize three syllables, 
o-ce-an, shortened from the Latin oceanus. Argosies are large mer- 
chant vessels, so called from the classical Argo, the ship which 
bore Jason and his companions from Thessaly to Colchis in quest 
of the golden fleece. Signiors is an Italian word from the Latin 
senior, elder, and means Italian gentlemen of mature years, or at 
least of dignified station. Burghers (from the Anglo-Saxon hurg, 
hurh, a place of shelter, a fort or stronghold, modern hury, as in 
Mill-hury, and borough as in Marlborough), means freemen of a burgh 
or borough, citizens, townsmen. 

(6) "in truth I do not understand the cause of my melancholy. 
It tires me : .you declare it tires you. But in what way I contracted 
it, lighted upon it, or acquired it, of what material it is composed, 



172 ^ APPENDIX. 

what gave it birth, I have yet to ascertain. And melancholy makes 
me such a ckmce that I have hard work to recognize myself. 

" Your sonl is disquieted in sympathy with the sea-waves, where 
your merchant-men with swelling canvas, like lords and wealthy 
citizens of the deep, or, so to term them, the majestic shows of the 
ocean, look loftily over the little traders that humbly bow to them, 
render them obeisance, as they soar past them on their loom-wrought 
pinions. 

(c) " The key-note of Antonio's part in the play is struck in the 
first six lines. He is in low spirits, and quite unfitted for dealing 
with a sharp business man like Shylock. The real cause of his 
depression is perhaps the prospect of soon losing the society of his 
most intimate friend, whose whole being is beginning to be ab- 
sorbed in a new attachment, thus leaving Antonio quite alone in 
the world. His modest self-depreciation attracts us to him. 

" The alliteration in lines 1, 6, 14, makes them smooth and 
pleasing. 

" The eighth line, which poetically represents Antonio's mind as 
tossing on the billows, and which reminds us of the Scripture 
saying, ' Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also,' is 
highly poetic in ascribing his uneasiness to a subtle sympathy with 
the unquiet and restless waves. There is, too, in the rhythm, a bil- 
lowy movement that is strikingly beautiful. 

Your mind is tossing on the d-ce-dn. _, 

The simile in line 10 is natural. The picture in line 13, contrasting 
the small craft with the large ships, is full of life. The personifi- 
cation begun by the word portly in line 9 and continued by signiors, 
hnrghers, traffickers, and the word curtsy, is quite vivid. But it 
seems to me that line 11 introduces an incongruous idea, and that 
there is a mixture of metaphors in transforming the portly noble- 
men of lines 9 and 10 into huge birds in line 14 ! " 
3. Criticisms and opinions of the class are called for. 

The foregoing rather crude treatment of the opening lines, sup- 
plemented by the judicious comments of the teacher, may illustrate 
what we believe to be one of the best possible exercises for giving 
fulness and accuracy in language and for cultivating the taste. It 
will be found, upon inspection, that our notes are prepared with a 
view to such exercises. Sometimes interpretations that are very 
nearly equivalent are given, in order that a nicety of taste and a 
felicity of expression may be developed in choosing among them. 
Care must be taken, however, not to push these or any other class 
exercises so far into detail as to render them uninteresting, or to 
withdraw attention from the great features of the play. It must 
ever be borne in mind that it is of vital importance to make the 
student enjoy this study. 



APPENDIX. 173 



TIME ANALYSIS. 

In 1875-6, Rev. N. J. Halpiii in Transactions of the Neio Shakespeare 
Societ;/, as quoted by Rolle, argued that the time of this play covers but 
thirty-iiiue hours! Thus : First period, ten hours, from the opening till the 
embarkation of Bassanio for Belmont ; Second period, eleven hours, from 
nine p.m. till eight a.m., being * the time of the bond,' or the time between 
Bassanio's embarkation and his arrival at Belmont; Third period, eigh- 
teen hours, being the time between Bassanio's arrival at Belmont and his 
return to it. Halpin argued that the bond was payable at sight or on de- 
mand, fraudulently substituted by Shylock for the one agreed upon ! — In the 
Transactions of the same society, 1877-9, Mr. P. A. Daniel answers Halpin, 
and argues for the following ' time-analysis ' : — Eight days (or parts of 
eight days), represented on the stage, with intervals. Total time, a little 
over three months. First day. Act I, followed by an interval of a week; — 
Second day. Act II, scenes i to vii, followed by an interval of one day ; — 
Third day. Act II, scenes viii, ix, followed by an interval bringing the time 
to within a fortnight of the maturity of the bond ; — Fourth day. Act III, 
scene i, followed by an interval of rather more than a fortnight; — Fifth 
day, Act III, scenes ii, iii, iv; — Sixth day, Act III, scene v, Act IV; — 
Seventli day, Act V, beginning late at night, and ending before dawn of 
the eighth day. — Test these theories ! 

In Furness's Variorum Edition of Othello (page 358 and following) is 
set forth a new theory of Professor Wilson in regard to the computation of 
time in Shakespeare's plays. He believes that Shakespeare makes use of 
two different computations, by one of which time is protracted, and by the 
other contracted. The argument for this * dual ' or ' double ' time is ingen- 
i^s. Those who wish to know more of it will do well to consult The 
ShaJcespeare iTe?/, published in 1879 by the Cowden-Clarkes ; also, Furness's 
Merchant of Venice, pages 338-345. 

CHARACTER ANALYSIS. 

From Shakespeariana for January, 1887, we take the following charac- 
ter analysis by M. W. Smith : — 

Principal Characters. — Antonio. His intellect. Adapted to busi- 
ness, I, i. Prudence blinded by affection, I, i. Deceived by Shylock's 
hypocrisy, I, iii; Practically philosophical, IV, i. — His moral nature. 
Generous, III, iii; Good, III, i; Affectionate, I, i; II, viii; III, ii, iii, iv; 
IV, i; Sincere, II, viii; Frank, I, iii; Magnanimous, III, ii; Honest, III, i; 
Opposed to usury, I, iii; Melancholy, I, i; IV, i; Patient and resigned, 

IV, i. — Bassanio. His intellect. Philosophical, III, ii; Good executive 
ability, II, ii; Forethought, II, ii; Easily deceived by Shylock, I, iii; A 
scholar, I, ii. His moral nature. Too proud to economize, I, i; Trusts to 
luck, I, i; Takes advantage of friendship, I, i; Frank, II, ii; III, ii; Ener- 
getic, II, ii; Good at making promises. III, ii; IV, i; V, i; Knows how to 
flatter, V, i; Generous, IV, i; Grateful, V, i; Undemonstrative, III, ii. — 
Portia. Her personal appearance. In general, I, i; II, viii; III, ii; Stat- 
ure, I, ii; Color of hair, I, i; III, ii. Her intellect. Philosophical, I, ii; 
II, ix; IV, i; V, i; Shrewd in reading character, I, ii; Practical, III, ii; 
Satirical, I, ii; II, ix; Humorous, II, ix; IV, ii; V, i; Has good common 
sense, III, ii ; Intellect predominates. III, ii. Her moral nature. In gen- 
eral, I, i; Extremely obedient. III, ii ; Frank and unaffected. III, ii; 
Generally hospitable. III, ii; V, i; Generous, III, ii; Undemonstrative, 

V, i ; Has faith in good luck, HI, ii ; Can equivocate, II, i ; Somewhat 
vain, V, i ; Somewhat silly, III, iv. — Shylock. His intellect. Philosoph- 
ical, III, i; IV, i; Logical, IV, i; Cool-headed, IV, i; Sharp in business, 
I, iii ; Quick at repartee, II, v ; IV, i. His moral nature. True to his relig- 



174 APPENDIX. 

ion, I, iii; IV, i; Patient under persecution, I, iii; Sensitive to wrong, I, 
iii ; III, i ; Superstitious, II, v ; Untruthful, I, iii ; Ironical, I, iii ; Miserly, 
II, ii; V, viii; Extremely avaricious. III, i; IV, i; A good hater, I, iii; 
II, viii; IV, i; Revengeful, I, iii; III, i; II, iii; Malicious, IV, i; Pitiless, 
IV, i; Relentless, IV, i; Heartless, III, iii: IV, i. — Verify ! 

The writer just quoted suggests the following questions to evoke criti- 
cism : How could Antonio so love a man ? Is not going to Shylock to borrow 
money a defect in Shakespeare's art ? Would Shylock make such a con- 
fession to Antonio (as in Act I, sc. iii) ? Why is the episode of Lorenzo and 
Jessica introduced ? Did Jessica give this ducat for the sake of friendship, 

II, iii? Is this natural, II, iii, 14-17? Did Shylock contrive against Anto- 
nio's life? Why did not Shylock manifest this exultation after line 33 
in scene i of the third act. III, i, 83-8J) ? Does Portia do most of the love- 
making? Was the bond a legal one? Does the bond say 'nearest his 
heart ' ? What is the connection between Bassanio and Gratiano, II, ii ; 

III, ii? Why do we believe that Antonio will not be hurt, and that Shy- 
lock will be defeated in his purpose, III, i ? Is Portia correct in her esti- 
mate of Antonio, III, iv ? Does the likeness between persons tend to 
promote friendship ? Would Shylock make such a statement in court as 
in IV, i, about hating Antonio? Could Portia so completely disguise her- 
self, IV, i? Is not her decision purely technical, IV^, i, 297, etc.? Would 
Shylock say this [the expression of acquiescence IV, i, 3S5, etc.] to save 
his life? Did Portia have large hands, IV, i, 417, etc.? AVhy is scene ii, 
Act IV, introduced ? Why is Act V usually omitted on the stage ? 

[Examination Paper by Wm. J. Rolfe, A.M., Lift. D., at Lasell Seminaw, 
April, 1884. The first 5 questions, which were not especially \\\)on Tlie 
Merchant of Venice, are omitted. The class had listened to several 
lectures on Shakespeare.] 

Question 6. When was The Merchant first printed ? What earlier ref- 
erences to the play ? When was it probably written ? 

7. What can you say of the source of the plot ? [Why have some critics 
sui)posed that Shakespeare may have visited Italy ?J 

8. What two things does the 1st line of the play illustrate ? 

9. What light does the 2d scene throw upon Portia's character ? Where 
else in the play is this illustrated ? 

10. Comment briefly upon some of the less obvious points in the poet's 
delineation of Shylock. 

11. Comi^are the Prince of Arragon and the Prince of Morocco. 

12. How do the poet's women often compare with the men to whom he 
gives them ? Is it so with Bassanio and Portia ? 

13. Give your impressions of Antonio. 

14. Explain the metrical peculiarities of the following lines : — 
{a) Your mind is tossing on the ocean. 

(6) And other of such vinegar aspect. 

(c) Thy skipping spirit, lest through thy wild behaviour. 

Id) Shall lose a hair through Bassanio's fault. 

(e) His rigorous course ; but since he stands obdurate. 

15. Explain the italicized words in the following : — 
(a) thou navghty gaoler! 

(6) the continent and summary of my fortune. 

(c) His me7'e enemy. 

(d) A livery more r/uarded than his fellows. 

(e) uncapable of pity. 
(/) but two years moe. 



APPENDIX. 175 

((/) - on the Rialto. 

(h) I tim informed throughly of the cause. 

(i) And see my wealthy Anclreio dock'd in sand, 

Vailing her hightop lower than her ribs. 
{1c) I am prest unto it. 
(1) So he gone; you are sped. 

(m) There are some shreivd contents in yon same papero 
(?i) patines of bright gold, 
(o) Forgive a moiety of the principal. 
{p) From whom he bringeth sensible regreets. 

16. Explain the grammatical peculiarities of the following: — 
(a) I had rather to be married to a death's-head. 

lb) A lady richly left. 

(c) I hate him for he is a Christian. 

(d) I am glad on 't. 

(e) The first, of gold, who this inscription bears. 
(/) A wife which is as dear to me as life itself. 
{(/) For who love I so much? 

(h) a gift ... of all he dies possessed. 

(^) The best condition'd and unwearied spirit. 

Ik) Some men there are love not a gaping pig. 

17. Comment on the following : — 

(a) The beauteous scarf 
Veiling an Indian beauty. 

(b) Nor none of thee, thou pale and common drudge 
'Tween man and man ; but thou, thou meagre lead. 

********** 
Thy plainness moves me more than eloquence. 
[Why change the palenesse of the early editions ?J 

(c) but the full sum of me 

Is sum of nothing, which, to term in gross, 
Is an unlesson'd girl, unschool'd, unpractis'd. 
[Why to be preferred to the quarto reading, ' sum of some= 
thing ' ?] 

18. What does the following Illustrate ? 

For if the Jew do cut but deep enough, 
I '11 pay it instantly with all my heart. 

19. What is to be said of the ' law ' in the following? 

This bond doth give thee here no jot of blood ; 
The words expressly are a pound of flesh. 

********** 
Shed thou no blood ; nor cut thou less nor more, 
But just a pound of flesh, etc. 
[What is true in general of Shakespeare's legal knowledge?] 

20. What do we learn of Shakespeare, the man, from this play? 

[Taken from the English Civil Service Commission and other papers.\ 

A. 

1. Write a short view of the character of Shylock, and give passages to 
illustrate (a) his hatred, (6) his avarice, and (c) the mixed motives which 
impel him to bring about the ruin of Antonio. 

2. What is the function of Gratiano in the play ? . 

3. State by whom, of whom, and on what occasions, the following hnes 
were uttered : — 



1 76 APPENDIX. 

(a) They lose it that do buy it with much care. 
(6) And many Jasons come iu quest of her. 

(c) For sufferance is the badge of all our tribe. 

(d) Aud I will go and purse the ducats straight. 

(e) So is Alcides beaten by his page. 
(/) Go to, here 's a simple line of life. 

(</) I think he only loves the world for him. 

4. Explain and annotate the following words and phrases: Paf/eanfs, 
prevented; J)laij the fool; loilfal stillness; profound conceit; for this 
f/ear ; a more swelling port ; fnd the other forth ; conimoditt/ ; (jood sen- 
tences; a proper man; sealed itnder ; stead me. 

5. Give some examples of compound adjectives in Shakespeare. 

6. What promise does Gratiano make to Bassauio before going down to 
Belmont ? 

B. 

1. Write a short account of the character of Portia. 
2.' Quote and explain as many legal phrases in this play as you remem- 
ber. 

3. Annotate the following lines, and state by whom aud when they were 
uttered : — 

(a) I have no mind of feasting forth to-night. 

(6) A golden mind stoops not to shows of dross, 

(c) I thought ui)on Antonio when he told me. 

id) Builds in the weather on the outward wall, 

(e) From whom he bringeth sensible regreets. 

(/) Hate counsels not in such a quality. 

4. Explain and annotate the following words and phrases : A faioning 
publican; ripe ivants ; possessed of; beholdinf/ ; your single bond; the 
fearful guard; loit; sand blind ; frutify ; pjreferred; guarded; civility; 
spoke lis of; and obliged faith. 

5. Give some examples of {a) verbs and (&) adjectives employed by 
Shakespeare with anusual meanings. 

(). Give some instances of the antecedent to ivho existing in a possessive 
pronoun. 

C. 

1. Write a short account of the scene of Bassanio with the caskets. 

2. Who are Leonardo, Nerissa, Lorenzo, Launcelot, and Jessica; and 
what part does each play? 

3. Exi)lain any peculiarities in the following lines ; aud state by whom 
and when they were spoken : — 

(a) I speak too long ; but 't is to peize the time. 

lb) The rest aloof are the Dardaniau wives, 

(c) Like one of two contending in a i^rize. 

(i^) Engaged my friend to his mere enemy, 

(e) I '11 follow him no more with bootless i^rayers. 

(/) You have a noble and a true conceit 
Of god-like amity. . . . 

4. Continue each of the above quotations. 

5. Explain and annotate the following words and phrases : Untread 
again; a loeak disabling ; snit; certified; you ivere best ; affection; de- 
rived; it lives unchecked ; fancy ; the guiled shore ; continent; shreiod 
contents; and e7?/orce. 

(). Give some instances of Shakespeare's use of the dative. 

7. Quote some examples of double comparatives, double superlatives, 
and of double negatives in Shakespeare. 

8. Tell the story of Lorenzo and Jessica, 



APPENDIX. 177 

D. 

1. Write a short account of the Trial Scene; and indicate briefly 

with quotations where you can — the behavior of {a) Antonio, {b) Bassauio 
(c) Gratiano, and (rf) Sliylock. ' 

2. What glimpses of ^'enice do we receive iu the play ? 

3. Annotate the following lines, and state by whom and on what occa- 
sions they were uttered : — 

(«) This comes too near the praising of myself. 
{b) O dear discretion, how his words are suited! 

(c) Forgive a moiety of the principal. 

(d) When they are fretteu with the gusts of heaven. 

(e) Repair thy wit, good youth, or it will fall 
To cureless ruin. 

(/) There is no power in the tongue of man 
To alter me. 

4. Write down the lines (a) which precede and {b) those which follow 
the above. 

5. Annotate and explaiu the following words and phrases : Imposition ; 
loithal; defy the matter; set you forth; remorse; bancd ; icithin his 
dcuifjer; lover; a just pound; and cope. 

6. Give some instances of the use of an adjective as an adverb. 

7. How does Shakespeare use un and in ? 

E. 

1. Write a short account of the Garden Scene and the Home-coming 
of Portia. 

2. Explain the classical allusions in the following lines : — 

(a) Troilus, methinks, mounted the Trojan walls. 
(&) Did Thisbe fearfully o'ertrip the dew. 
(e) Stood Dido with a willow in her hand. 
{d) Medea gathered the enchanted herbs. 

3. Quote the passage beginning: — 

' How sweet the moonlight sleeps upon this bank.' 

4. What does Shakespeare say about the power of music ? 

5. Explain the following words and phrases : Stockish ; nothing is good 
ivithout respect; hold day loith the Antipodes; been respective; break 
faith advisedly; fear no other tiling so sore as keeping safe Nerissa's 
ring. 

6. Give some examples of Shakespeare's use of nomis as verbs. 

7. Quote some passages in which an if is used. 

8. In what ways does Shakespeare use the proposition in ? 

9. Give some instances, from this or from other plays, of Shakespeare's 
use of a double negative. 

Antonio, the Merchant, 
\_By C. P. in " Shakespeariana'' for November, 1886.] 

• "^i' ^ ' T ^^^ ^^^ ^® ^^^^ ^ ^^^^ ^^^ sadness a mood ? — Something rooted 
m his disposition, or something springing from it ? And why ? What two 
causes of it are assigned by Salanio and Salarino ? Did Antonio deny both 
of these ? Do you think the departure of the rest as soon as Bassanio enters 
significant in any way ? Did Gratiano understand Antonio aright in the 
inferences he seems to draw? How do Antonio and Bassanio take what he 
said ? What did they have to say to each other ? Did Antonio expect such 
a revelation as Bassanio made? Was Bassanio guarded at first? Does 



1 78 APPENDIX. 

Antonio seem to feel he was? Does Bassanio's tone seem to change some- 
what? If it does, where? — and how was it? — and what may it seem to 
signify of the relations of Antonio, Bassauio and Portia ? How does Antonio 
receive Bassanio's full revelation ? 

I, iii: What does Shylock have to say of Antonio? How does Antonio 
speak and act before the Jew? How much of his speech and conduct may 
you attribute to race prejudice and what remains beyond this to sliow the 
innate disposition of the man? Why does Bassauio fear Shylock's bond 
more than Antonio does ? 

H, vi: Has Antonio's appearance here any bearing on anything l)esides 
the conduct of the story ? 

in, i : Does the conversation of Salarino and Salanio throw any light on 
anj^thing but the story, and on their own characters? — That is to say, on 
Antonio's character or his reputation? 

in, ii: Is the letter to Bassauio the most intimate revelation given of 
Antonio's character. What does it lead Bassfiuio to say of liis letter? Of 
him ? Is this consistent with the other conclusions you have drawn ? 

Ill, iii, and IV, i: In the scene with the Jew and the jailer how does 
Antonio act ? And what does he say in accepting the issue of events in this 
scene; and later in the Trial Scene? In urging Bassauio to give up the 
ring ? 

V, i : What value have Antonio's last words after the arrival in Belmont ? 

AVelding these dramatic effects together, into what shape has Antonio's 
character grown before your eyes ? 

\_Prize exaiiiinaiion loith slif/ht omissions, hy Prof. Wm. Taylor Thorn, 
from " hfhakesjyeariana," 1886.] 

1. When was the Merchant of Venice written, and when printed? 

2. Is the present form the original, or probably a revised one? 

3. How are the upward and downward limits of the date of the play 
fixed ? 

4. State briefly the method of determining the chronological order of 
Shakespeare's plays. Its value ? 

5. And where, according to this scheme, does the Merchant of Venice 
come ? 

6. With what earlier play is it compared in some particulars? On which 
play is it an advance ? 

7. Where did Shakespeare probably find the plot of the Merchant of 
Venice ? 

8. What are the main sources of the plot most resembling the Merchant 
of Venice? 

9. What additional hints for his plot may Shakespeare have gotten else- 
where ? 

10. Wherein is Shakespeare's originality in the play ? Can you illustrate 
from any other great author whom you have read? 

Explain fully the grammatical usages in the following passages : — 

11. I, 1. — But even noio worth this, and now, Avortli nothing. 

12. I, 1. — As toho should say " I am Sir Oracle." 

13. I, 1. — Nor do I now make moan to he abridged. 

14. 1, 1. — To shoot another arrow that se(/'way. 

15. I, 2. — You should refuse to perform your father's will if you should 

refuse to accept him. 

16. I, 3. — For the which Antonio shall be bound. 

17. I, 3. — 3Iay you stead me ? 

18. I, 3. — Seal me there Your single bond. 

19. I. 3. — Whose own hard dealings teaches them suspect. 



APPENDIX. 179 

20. II, 2. — Put the liveries to mal-inf/. 

21. II, 4. — Whiter than the paper it vrrlt on Is the fair hand that lorit. 

22. II, 5. — Perhaps I loill return imiuediately. 
2'). 11, 8. — You ivere best to tell Antonio. 

24. Ill, 2. — If that tlie youth of my new interest. 

25. Ill, 2. — My purpose was not to have seen you here. 

26. Ill, 2. — Contents in yon same paper that steals. 

27. IV, 1. — A wife WJiich is as dear to me as life itself. 

28. V, 1. — Or hall" lier worthiness that gave the ring. 

29. V. 1. — Or your own honor to contain the ring. 

(«) Give other ilhistrations if you can, and show by the meaning of co/i^rmi the 
position of Latin dorivatives in Elizabethan English as compared with Modern Eng- 
lish. 

(&) Causes of the great influx of Latin words during that period. 

(c) Light thrown by the discussion upon Shakespeare's learning as a Latin 
scholar. 

{(I) Any other instance of a great author's use of words said to be ^«^-English at 
a transition xjeriod of the language. 

Explain in the following passages the Shakespearian meanings or usages 
imf ami liar or changed in Modern English ; also any other matters : — 
oO. I, 1. — Or, as it were, th.Q pageants of the sea. 

31. 1,1.— 

Let me play ihefool. 
With mirth and laughter let old wrinkles come, 
And let my liver rather heat with wine 
Than my heart cool with mortifying groans. 

32. I, 2. — The condition of a saint and the complexion of a devil. 
Ill; 1. — It is the complexion of them all to leave the dam. 

33. I, 3. — How like afaiunivc/ p-ahlican he looks. 

34. I, 1. — And spit upon my Jewish f/aberdine. 

35. II, 2. — I have set up my rest to run away. 

3(i. II, 2. — Well, if any man in Italy have di fairer table. 

37. II, 5.^ Will he worth a Jeioess' eye. 

38. Ill, 1. — ^ Would she were hearsed at my foot. 

39. Ill, 1. — It was my turquoise ; I had it of Leah when I was a hachelor. 

40. Ill, 2. — Tell me where is fancy hred. Prohable meaning of the song. 

41. Ill, 2. — That royal merchant, good Antonio. 

42. IV, 1. — Affection, mistress of passion, sways it to the mood. 

43. IV, 1. — You stand within his danger, do you not? 

44. IV, 1. — Nearest his heart. Those are the very words. 

45. IV, 1. — Explain this speech of Portia. 

46. IV, 1. — Exi)lain this speech of Antonio. 

47. V, 1. — Is thick inlaid yv'\W\ patines of bright gold, ov, patterns? 

48. V, 1. — But in his motion like an angel sings. 

49. V, 1. — The moon sleeps with Endymion. Whence so many classical 

allusions in Shakespeare as compared with modern writers ? 

50. V, 1. — If you had known the virtue of the ring. 

Esthetic. 

51. As its name suggests, what is the material, so to speak, of the Mer- 
chant of Venice as compared with some others of Shakespeare's plays? 

52. Antonio's character and his part in the play. 

53. Development of character in Bassanio. 

54. Launcelot in himself and in his relation to others. The Launcelot 
element in Hamlet ; in Macbeth ; in King Lear f 

55. Shylock in the early scenes of the play. 



180 



APPENDIX. 



56. Is Shylock's love for his Religion and his Sacred Nation a genuine 
one as compared with Antonio's philanthropy? See his talk with Tubal, 
and Tubal's api^arent I'eeling for him. Comipare him briefly with Nathan 
the Wise. 

57. Does Shylock already look forward to compassing Antonio's death 
when he proposes the pound of liesh forfeiture ? Your reasons. 

58. Compare Shylock and Macbeth as to the progression of their natures. 

59. What is it in the characters themselves that enables Shakespeare to 
satisfy our ideas of retributive justice, while permitting Othello and Lear 
and Hamlet to perish, and yet letting Shylock and lago live ? 

60. Jessica's character and conduct, particularly with reference to Shy-= 
lock's influence and training, by contrast with Portia's home influence. 

61. Compare the character-progression in Portia with Lady Macbeth; 
with Goneril, with Imogen. 

62. Is Portia's intellect masculine in its grasp? How is it that she beats 
Shylock in their contest ? 

63. Is the Fifth Act necessary dramatically or not ; and its relation to 
the rest of the play ? 

64. The Fifth Act as showing the working out of the principles of good 
and evil. Why does Antonio appear in it and Shylock not ? 

65. Compare the Fifth Act with the Fifth Acts of Cymheline, Lear, and 
Hamlet, so as to show how good could triumph positively in the Merchant 
of Venice and Cymheline, and only negatively in Kim/ Lear and Hamlet. 
Compare with final result in Tennyson's Enid. 

66. How does Shakespeare se* about delineating his chief characters as 
comi)ared with other authors ? Importance of his secondary personages in 
this particular. 

67. What do you think of Shakespeare as an artist ? Illustrate by his 
groupings of characters in Merchant of Venice ; in Kinf/ Lear. 

68. By single scenes, and by contrast of scenes in Merchant of Venice ; 
in Macbeth. 

69. And by contrast of plots and of incidents in Merchant of Venice ; in 
Kinfi I^ear. 

70. What seems to you Shakespeare's value as a Moralist? and do you 
regard him as having moral teaching distinctly in view in his works ? 

71. What is the ethical import, the life lesson of the Merchant of Venice ? 

72. Shakespeare's last plays as showing his general and personal view of 
life ; his last years compared with Bacon's and Milton's. 

73. AVhat do you think of Shakespeare the man, and his own character- 
progression as shown in his works ? Compare Mrs. Cowden-Clarke, Taine, 
and others. 

SOME TOPICS FOR ESSAYS. 



The time covered by the play. 
Moral lessons taught by the play. 
The prose diction in the play. 
Essay on some one scene. 
What scenes niiglit be omitted. 
Estimate of Weiss's views. 
Estimate of White's views. 
Estimate of Mrs. Jameson's 

views. 
Estimate of some other critics. 
Story of the Argonauts. 
Milton's epitaph on Shakespeare. 



Milton's estimate of Shakespeare. 

Sources of the plot. 

Portia's wit and linmor. 

Originality of Shakespeare. 

Ruling passion of Prince of Mo- 
rocco. 

Ruling passion of Prince of Ar- 
ragon. 

Ruling passion of Slij'^lock. 

National traits hit off in I, ii. 

Jessica's treatment of her father. 

Jessica's home-life. 



APPENDIX. 



181 



Shylock's home-life. 

Did Sliyloclt invent the stories of 
Antonio's losses? 

Launcelot's fun. 

The music of the spheres. 

Pythagoras and metempsychosis. 

Launcelot's classical learning. 

Shakespeare's classical learning. 

Shylock on slavery. 

The legal quibble in Act IV. 

Portia's appeal to Shylock's bet- 
ter nature. 

Antonio's treatment of Shylock. 

Power of music (in Act V) . 

Eftect of music on character. 

The quarrel about the rings. 

Bible allusions in this play. 

Antonio's sadness. 

Gratiano's plan of life. 

Bassanio as a business man. 

Lorenzo's and Jessica's shiftless- 
ness. 

How old were . the leading char- 
acters in this play? 

Red blood as a mark of courage. 

The classical allusions in the 
play. 



Shakespeare's ladies in men's ap- 
parel. 

Orpheus in Shakespeare. 

Hercules in Shakespeare. 

Diana and Endymion. 

Shakespeare's puns. 

The names of the characters in 
the play. 

The superstitions alluded to. 

Shakespeare on the use of the 
rack. 

Shakespeare's training literary 
rather than scientilic. 

Your conception of Belmont. 

The time occupied in the play. 

^schylus and Shakespeare. 

Costumes of the characters. 

The Hebrew in England. 

The hint in the song about Eancy. 

Moral purpose in the drama, and 
in art in general. 

Posies of rings. 

Hanging of wolves. 

Shylock's reverence for law. 

Cheiromancy. 

' ' Holy men at their death have 
good inspirations." 



INDEX 



WORDS, PHRASES, AND TOPICS. 



a many, 124 
a' will, 69 
abide, 128 
a-bleeding, 79 
a-brewing, 79 
a-capering, 52 
accomplished, 121 
account, exceed, 108 
accoutred, 121 
achiev'd, 111 
address'd, 91 
advantage, uijon, 58, 59 
advice, 146 
advis'd, 66 
advised watch, 47 
advisedly, 161 
afear'd, 86 
after dinner, 44 
agitation, 122 
ague, blow me to an, 40 
alablaster, 43 
alack ! 69, 76 
Alcides, 66, 103 
aleven, 73 

Alexandrine line, 113 
alien, syllab.? 141 
all my whole, 121 
amity, godlike, 118 
an = if ? 53, 69, 77 
and = if ? 51, 145, 158 
and so following, 57 
Andrew docks in sand, 41 
angel, 87 
anon, 71 
antipodes, 156 
apparent, 127 
appropriation, 51 
approve, 104 
are, for have ? 50 
argosies with portly sail, 

39 
as, omitted? 117 
as who = like one who? 

44 
aspect, vinegar, 42 



at full, events, 162 
attempt, 144 
attended, 154 
attribute to awe, 135 
aweary of this great, 49 



B 

badge of all, 60 
balance, are there? 137 
Balthaear, 133 
Barlaam and Josaphat, 12 
Barrabas, 139 
Bassanio, 42, 43 etc. 
ban'd, 128 

baron of England, 52 
bated me, 118 
be = are? 56, 139 
be, prefix, 41, 84 
bechanc'd, such a thing, 41 
beefs, or goats, 62, 63 
be'st, 86 

be friends with you, 61 
beholding, 60 
Bellario, 120, 133 
Belmont, 47 
beshrew, 84, 101 
best-condition'd, 115 
bestow'd, 74 
best-regarded virgins, 64 
bid forth, 79 
Black Monday, 79 
bless the mark, 67 
blest or cursed'st, 66 
blest, twice, 134 
Boccaccio's Decameron, 

11 
Bon, Le, 51 
bonnet, 52, 53 
bottom, in one, 41 
braver grace, 121 
break, sense of? 61, 62, 77 
break up, 77 
breathing curtesy, 156 
breed of barren metaJ, 61 
Brutus' Portia, 48 



burghers on the flood, 39, 

40 
burnieh'd sun, 64 
but 1= if I do not? 84 
by= as to? 51, 92 



C 

came by it, 39 
Campbell's comments, 26 
candles of the night, 16U 
carrion, 87, 128 
cat, necessary, 128 
cater-cousins, 72 
Cato's daughter, 48 
cerecloth, to rib her, 87 
ceremony, a, 159 
ceremoniously, 150 
certified the duke, 89 
charge, on your, 137 
charge us there upon, 162 
charter, 128 
Charybdis, 122 
chaste as Diana, 54 
cheer, a merry, 115 
cheer'st thou, 124 
cheiromancy, 73 
cherubins, 151 
childhood proof, 47 
circumstance, with, 47 
civil doctor, 159 
church, 115 

chooses his meaning, 50 
Chus, 114 
close night, 83 
cold drops of modesty, 74 
Colchos' strand, 48 
colt, that's a, 50 
comes by, 49 
commandement, syl.? 145 
coming-in, 73 
commends, 95 
commodity, 48, 118 
complexion, syllab.? 64, 88 
complexion, 55, 97 
compromis'd, 59 



184 



INDEX. 



companions, 119 
conceit, 44, 118 
condition of a saint, 55 
confess and live, or love, 

102 
confiscate, 140 
confound, 114 
confusions, try, 68 
conjured the devil, 57 
contain the ring, 158, 159 
constant man, 112 
constitution, syllables? 

112 
contemplation, 119 
continent and summary, 

107 
contrive, 141 
conveniency, 130 
convenient, 120 
conveniently become, 90 
cool with mortifj'ing, 43 
cope, 144 
costly summer, 95 
could not do withal, 121 
counterfeit, 107 
County Palatine, 51 
court, or couise f 135 
courtesies, these, 61 
cousin's hand, 120 
cover, 93, 123 
cozen fortune, 92 
cream and mantle, 44 
Cressid, 148 

crisped, snaky, golden, 105 
crosses, by holy, 150 
cruelty, or misery f 119 
Cupid's post, 95 
cureless, or endless, 132 
current, of cruelty, 129 
curtsy to them, 40 
cutler's poetry, 157 

D 

-d or -ed, omitted, 110, 111, 

116, 140, 148 
damn those, 44 
danger, Avithin his, 134 
Daniel, a, 136 
Darduiiian wives, 103 
dare misfortune, 78 
dear-bought, 115, 116 
dearest ring, 145 
debating of, 58 
debt, imprisonment for, 

116 
deface tlie bond, 115 
defect of the matter, 72 
defy the matter, 124 
demurely, look, 75 
deny, 114, 118, 145 
description, syllab. ? 115 
desire your grace of, 144 
determine this, 130 
Diana, 54, 152 
difference, 78, 133, 142 
disabled mine estate, 45 



disabling of myself, 86 

discharge, the, 114, 135, 136 

discover, 85 

discovery, office of, 83 

discretion, O dear! 124 

disguise us, 77 

dish of doves, 72 

dismiss this court, 130 

distinct offices, 93 

division, 140 

do, auxiliary, 40 

do we so, 91 

doit of usance, 61 

doth = is ? 112 

double, 160 

double comparative, 137 

doublet, 52 

Dowden's comments, 34 

down therefore, 142 

dowrj', 105 

draw her home, 162 

draw the curtain, 91 

drive unto a fine, 142 

ducats, 55 

duU-ey'd fool, 117 

dumb show, 52 

dwell, 62 

E 

eanlings, 59 

-ed, often omitted? 110, 
111, 116, 148 

election, to his, 91 

ellipsis, 76, 82, 117, 118, 
119, 121, 132, 159 

embraced heaviness, 90, 91 

employ ... to, 90 

endless, or cureless, 132 

Eudymion, 154, 155 

enforce you, 118 

engag'd, 113 

English Lit., how to study, 
163 etc. 

enow, for enough f 122, 
127 

enrobe the roaring, 41 

entertain, with jjurpose, 44 

envious, 114 

envy, 126 

epitaph, write my, 131 

equal ijound, 62 

Erebus, dark as, 153 

ergo, 69 

error, many an, 136 

estates, 92, 116 

estimation, 86, 141 

exceeding strange, 42 

excess, giving of, 58 

exclaim on, 109 

excrement, valor's, 105 

exchange, of my, 83 

exhibit my tongue, 76 

expect their coming, 150 

explanations of abbrevia- 
tions etc., 36 

eye of honor, 46 



F 

fading in music i02 
fair, 62, 65, 138 
faithless, 78 
Falconbridge, 52 
fall = happen ? 63 
fancy bred, 103 
fare ye well, 42 
fast bind, fast find, 81 
fawning publican, 57 
fear'd the valiant, 64 
fear, peculiar sense ? 64 

101, 122 
fearful guard, 63 
feather-bed, t/dge of, 73 
fellow, shot bis, 46 
fie, fie ! 41 
fife, wry-necfe'd, 80 
fill-horse, 7C 
fill up, 133 
fire, dissyl.'f 93 
fleet, 132 
Fletcher, 155 
Fletcher quoted, 107 
flight, selfsame, 46 
flourish, 102 
following = forth, 57 
fond, 92, 117 
fool multitude, 92 
fool, let me play the, 43 
fool-gudgeon, 44 
foolish drops, drown, 76 
for = because, or — ? 57, 

83 
for the heavens, 67 
forbid the pines, 129 
force ... of casualty, 92 
forfeit be nominated. 62 
forfeit, 116, 136 
forfeiture, 117, 131 
formerly, ov formally ? 142 
forth, sense of ? 47, 80, 125 
forth, venture, 40 
four winds, the, 48 
fraught, richly, 89 
freedom of the state, 114 
freely, 112 
French words blundered 

over, 81 
fretted with the gusts, 129 
friends, I would be, 61 
from, Avish nOne from me, 

110 
frutify, 72 
full stop, 96 

G 

gaberdine, 00 
gag'd, left me, 46 
gaping pig, 128 
garnish'd like him, 124 
gear, 45, 72, 73 
gentle, 41, 127 
G-entile, 84 
Gernutus, the Jew, 12 



INDEX. 



18,") 



giddy in spirit, 108 

glisters, all that, 88 

go, give him, 132 

go hard but, 98 

go to, 60 

go we in, 150 

(iod bless the mark, 67 

godfathers, ten, 143 

golden fleece, like a, 48 

good man, Antonio, 56 

good sweet, 124 

goodly, or godhj? 59 

Goodwins, 96 

gormandize, 79 

Gower's Gonfessio Araan- 

tis, 11 
gracious, 104 
graraercy, 71 
grandam, 75 
grand sire, cut in alablaster, 

43 
grant, 117 
gratify, 144 

gratis, 57, 116, 117, 142, 143 
gree, 70, 71 

green-ey'd jealousy, 106 
gross, 87, 108, 109 
guai-ded, 73 
gudgeon, fool, 44 
guiled shore, 105 



H 

habit, 75 

had rather to be, 51 

Hagar's offspring, 80 

hair, dissyl. ? 115 

hairs, in her, 107 

Hallam's comments, 26 

haug'd for human slaugh- 
ter, 132 

hangman's axe, 131 

happiest of all is, or in ? 
109 

hard food for Midas, 106 

hare is madness, 49 

harmony, in souls, 151 

hath, or have? 113 

having, 107 

hazard, 91 

Hazlltt's comments, 24 

head, 94 

hear thee, Gratiano, 74 

Heaven, euphemism ? 83 

heavy husband, 156 

Heine's comments, 26 

heinous sin, 76 

Hercules, 66, 104 

hie thee, 63, 74 

he . . . he, distributive ? 
128 

high-day wit, 95 

high-gravel-blind, 68 

hermit, holy, 150 

hip, upon the, 57, 141 

his = its? 46, 151 

hit, not one, 113 



hold day, 156 

honor, eye of, 46 

hood, by my ! 84 

hood mine eyes, 75 

Hooker, 152 

hose, round, 52 

hour, tire, etc., dissyl. ? 93 

hour-glass, sandy, 40 

hovel-post, 69 

how say you, 51 

how to study Eng. Lit., 

163 etc. 
howsoe'er, 125 
humor, 128 

Hudson's comments, 35 
humility, what 's his, 98 
husbandry, 119 
Ilyrcanian deserts, 86 



I, for me.? 116 

I were best, 158 

I wis, 93 

if that. 111 

imagin'd speed, 120 

impeach the freedom, 114 

impediment, no, 133 

imperative, first person, 
91, 150 

impugn you, 134 

in all sense, 156 

in= go in? 73 

in = into? 151 

in supposition, 56 

incarnation = incarnate? 67 

Indian beauty, 105 

inexecrable, or inexor- 
able? IZl, 132 

inflections disregarded? 50, 
116 

insculp'd upon, 87 

instantly, 138 

interest, he calls, 58 

inter'gatories, 162 

intermission, 110 

'ion, dissyl.? 46, 154 etc. 

its, in Shakespeare etc., 46 



Jacks, 121 

Jacob graz'd his, 59 

Jacob's staff, SO 

Jameson's (Mrs.) com- 
ments, 24 

Janus, by two-headed, 42 

Jasons, 48, 112 

Jastrow, Dr., 139 

jaundice, creep into the, 
43 

Jessica, 76, 77 etc. 

Jewess' eye, 80 

Johnson's comments, 23 

judgment, 130, 137 

jump with common, 92 

justice at thy plea, 135 



K 

keep his day, 89 
kept with men, 117 
key, rhyme? 87 
key-note of the play, 30 
kiss her burial, 41 
Knight's comments, 27 
knapped ginger, 96 
knave, 63 



Launcelot, 66, 67 etc. 
Latin, Shakespeare's, 52, 

61, 87, 153 
lays, fov lay ?in, 132 
lead'st this fashion, 127 
Leah, I had it of, 100 
leave = part with ? 157 
lends, or lent? 116 
let him lack, 133 
level at my, 50 
liberal, 74 
Lichas, 66 
lieu, 144 

life, or leaque ? 101 
light, pun? 83, 105, 156 
lightest, 105 
like= likely, 87 
likely = promising? 95 
limp behind, 107 
line of life, 73 
livers white as milk, 105 
liver rather heat, 43 
liveries, rare new, 71 
livery, shadow'd, 64 
lives there unchecked, 96 
living, life and, 161 
livings, 108 

locks, snaky golden, 105 
lodg'd hate, 128 
loose the forfeiture, 127 
TiOrd worshipped, 70 
lose it that do buy it, 43 
love, a, 138, 157 
lover, 118 

M 

magnificoes, 114 
main flood, 129 
making question, 47 
manage, husbandry and, 

119 
manna, 161 
mannerly, 95 
many, a, 124 
many a time, 60 
marry! 68 
Mars, frowning, 104 
martlet, 92 
masque, 79 
master, 68 

masters of passion, 128 
mastership, 69 
match, 97, 98, 124 



186 



INDEX. 



may, sense of ? 55 
matter, 124 
meau liappiness, 49 
mean it, 124 
me, ethical dative? 71 
Medea, 149 
mercenary, more, 144 
mere enemy, 113 
Meres, Francis, 9 
metaphor, mixed? 129 
methought, 58 
Mexico, 113 

Midas, hard food for, 106 
Milton's epitaph, 2 
miucinir, steps, 121 
mind of, 80, 90 
misbeliever, call me, 00 
miscarried, 89, 116, 161 
misconstrued, 75 
misery, accent? 138 
mislike me not, 64 
moan, make, 46, 117 
moe, two years, 45 
moiety of the principal, 

127 
monastery, 119 
Montferrat, 54 
more advice, 146 
more elder, 137 
more, sense of? 86 
Morley's comments, 36, 

162 
Morocco, 85, 86 etc. 
mortal breathing, 86 
moth, rhyme? 94 
much unreasonable, 159 
multitude, fool, 92 
music, 151 

music of the spheres, 151 
muttons, beefs, 62, 63 
mutual stand, 152 
my lord, playful? 94 



N 

narrow seas, 89, 96 
naughty, 101, 117 
neat's tongue dried, 45 
needs, sense etc., 78 
negatives, double? 50, 119 
Nestor swear the jest, 42 
new-varnish'd, 93 
nice direction, 64 
nightingale, 154 
no impediment to let, 133 
nominative omitted? 118 
nor refuse none, 50 
nor will not, 66, 119, 128, 

153 
nose fell a-bleeding, 79 
note, I come by, 108 
nothing, or something f 

108 



O 

oath in heaven, 136 

obdurate, 126 

obliged faith, 82. 

obscure, 87 

occasions, 46, 123 

ocean, trisyl.? 39 

obscure grave, 87 

obscur'd, 83 

of, omitted, 45, 143 

of, sense of, 78, 125, 144, 

162 
of force, 144 
offence, 129 - 
offend'st thy lungs, 132 
o'erlook'd me, 101 
o'ei'-stare, 65 
old swearing, 146 
on, for of? 84 
on (or off) the flood, 40 
only, 109 
on 's face, 157 
ope my lips, 44 
opinion, 44 
or whether, 107 
oracle, I am, sir, an, 44 
Orator of Alex. Silvayn, 20 
Orpheus, 152, 153 
Osgood, Mrs., cited, 152 
ostent, a sad, 75 
ostents of love, 90 
other of such vinegar, 42 
our, or your f wishes, 110 
out of doubt, 40 
overpeer the petty, 40 
over-weather'd ribs, 82 
Ovid, 148, 149 etc. 



Padua, 120 

pageants of the sea, 40 

pains, 75 

pale and common drudge, 

106 
paleness, or plainness, 106 
Palatine, County, 51 
parcel of wooers, 54 
pardon, 142 
part, thus losers, 88 
parts, his good, 51 
parts, slavish, 1-30 
passion, 89 
patch is kind, 81 
patines of bright gold, 151 
pawn'd, 124, 125 
party, 141 
peals of praise, 108 
peasantry, 93 
Pecorone, 14 
peep through their eyes, 

42 
peering in maps, 40 
peize the time, 101 
pent-house, 81 
Percy's Reliques, 12 



persuaded with him, 114 
Phojbus' tire, 64 
pied, streak'd and, 59 
piers and roads, 40 
pines, forbid the, 129 
pirates, 56 
play the fool, 43 
please, 50, 62, 82, 83 
pleasure, verb, 55 
pleonasm? 121 
plucking the grass, 40 
plural, or singular? 62, 

101, 119, 120 
poesy, 156, 157 
port, a more swelling, 45 
Portia, 48, 94 etc., 
possess'd = informed? 58, 

127 
post come, 1.50 
power, u])on my, 130 
prating, 157 
pray for mercy, 135 
prayer. Lord's, 135 
preferr'd thee, 72 
preferment, 72 
predicament, 142 
presages me, 48 
presence, 102 
presently =^ immediately? 

49, 63, 91j 143, 146 
prest unto it, 47 
prevented me, 42 
prize, contending in a, 108 
prodigal, like a, 82 
prodigal, 46, 97 
producing holy witness, .59 
proof, childhood, 47 
prop, 69, 142 
proper, 52 

prove it = if it prove? 101 
provided of, 78 
publican, 57 
punning, 49, 50. 56, 65, 83, 

125,131,138 
purchas'd, 92, 130 
purse the ducats, 63 
pursue sentence, 139 
puts, plu. or sing.? 101 
Pythagoras, 132, 151 



Q 

quaint, 121 

quaintly order'd, 77 

qualify, 126 

quality, in such a, 100 

quarrelling with occasion, 

123 
question, 47, 129 
quicken . . . heaviness, 90 
quiring, 151 

B 

rack. Bacon and Shakes., 

101, 102 
rain, or rein? 106 



INDEX. 



187 



raise the waters, G8, 69 
rais'd the duke, 89 
rate, a noble, 46 
rather, had rather to bo 

etc., 51 
raw tricks, 121 
ready, so please, 126 
reason is not, 50 
reason'd with a, 89 
red blood and courage, 64, 

105 
reddest, or redder f 64 
reed voice, 121 
regreets, sensible, 94 
recant the pardon, 143 
relation to the peualtj- , 137 
remorse, pity and, 127 
render the deeds, 135 
reproacli, expect your, 79 
repent not you, 138 
respect, 43, 154 
respective, J 57 
rest, set u}) my, 71 
rest you fair, 58 
Rhenish wine, 53, 97 
rheum, 60 

Rialto, upon the, 56 
richly, 48, 161 
ring, 109, 158, 159 
ripe wants, 58 
riping of the time, 90 
rival place, hold a, 48 
riveted, 157 
roads, idlers and, 40 
road, come to, 161 
Roberts' quarto, 9 
Rolfe's edition, 5 
round hose, 52 
Rowe's comments, 23 
royal merchant, 112, 127 
ruin, 93 

rule, in such, 134 
runaway, play the, 84 
running with thy heels, 67 

S 

Sabbath, by our, 127 
sadness of Antonio, 39 
satisfied of, 162 
sand-blind, 68 
saved by my husband, 122 
saving your reverence, 67 
say = suppose? 128 
scanning, 41, 106, 112, 113, 

154, 160 
scanted me, 65 
scape, 73, 113 
schedule, 93 
Sehlegel's comments, 24 
scimitar, by this ! 65 
scorn running, 67 
Scottish lordr53 
scrubbed boy, 157 
Scylla, 122 
sealed under, 53 



season, 154 

season 'd, 104, 154 

self, 46 

sensible, affection, 90 

sensible regreets, 94 

sentences, good, 49 

set up my rest, 71 

set you forth, 125 

Shalt, 142 

sliull and loill, 45, 111 

shames, 61 

shame and courtesy, heu- 

diadys? 159, 160 
shift, make, 53 
should, or shall? 52 
should = would? 53, 114 
show likest God's, 135 
shrewd contents, 112 
shrive me than wive me, 

55 
shrug, patient, 60 
Sibylla, old as, 54 
Signiors and rich, 39 
simple, 73, 104 
single bond, 61 
sisters three, the, 69 
sits the wind, 40 
sirrah, 80 
skipping spirit, 74 
slubber not business, 90 
smug upon the mart, 97 
snail, slow in profit, 81 
Snider's comments, 34 
soft ! 58, 140 
so . . . as, 54 
so = if? 110 
so, omitted? 121 
sola! imitative? 150 
something showing a, 45 
sometimes from her eves, 

48 
sonties, 68 
soon at supper, 76 
sooth, I know not, 39 
Sophy, 65 
sort all, 156 
sort, 53 

soul, and sole, 131 
sources of the plot, 10 ~ 
speak me fair in'death, 138 
specify, or sjncifi/, 71 
speed, 155 

sped, you are, 94, 155 
spet upon, 60 
spoils, 153 
spoke, 77, 109 
spoke us of, 77 
spurn me, 60 
squandered abroad, 56 
squealing and squealcinq, 

80 
stage where every man, 

43 
stairs, or stayers f 104 
starv'd and ravenous, 132 
starved people, 161 
stead me, 55 



steal from, 149 
steal your thoughts, 64 
steals the color, 112 
Stephano, 149 
still, 40, 46, 104, 138 
stockish, 153 
stomach, I have a, 125 
straight, bethink me, 41 
strain'd, is not, 134 
strange, exceeding, 42 
stream, spices on the, 41 
studied in a sad ostent, 75 
stuff 't is made of, 39 
substance, 140 
success, 112 
suddenly, 161 
suited, how, 52, 124 
Sultan Solyman, 65 
sum of my confession, 102. 
sum of nothing, 108 
supposed fairness, 105 
supposition, in, 56 
surfeit, 49, 107 
swan-like end, 102 
sweat, for stveated ? 110, 

111 
sweet, good, 124 
swelling port, 45 
swift, 110 
syllabication, 46 
synagogue, 100 



table, a fairer, 73 
tainted, 104, 131 
teaches, for teacli ? 62 
tell every finger, 71 
temple, to the, 66 
term in gross, 109 
til, and/, 70 

-th, sense of this suffix? 160 
than = than in f 115 
that, sense of? Ill, 118, 

126 
the which, 55, 119, 141 
theatre imagery, 43 
thee, for thou ? 63, 74 
therefore only are, 44 
thills, 70 

this = all this ? 41 
Thisbe, 148 
thorough, dissyl.? 115 
thou, 120 
thou, or then f 99 
three cakes, story of, 10 
thrift, presages me such, 

48 
throughfares, 86 
tlirostle sing, 52 
to, use of ? 41, 46, 67, 76, 86 
to, omitted ? 86, 152 
to have, in double perfect, 

159 
tombs, or timber f 88 
too too light, 83 



188 



INDEX. 



torturer doth teach, 102 

touch, 113 

tranect, 120 

tribe, of all our, 60 

tricksy word, 121 

Tripolis, 56, 99 

Troilus, 148 

troth, by my, 49 

trust, of my, 49 

truth, malice bears down, 

136 
Tubal, 58, 98 
tucket, 155 

turquoise, my, 99, 100 
tyranny, 126 



U 

uncapable of pity, 126 
undertook, 77 
nudervalu'd to, 48, 87 
unfurnish'd, 107 
nnhandled colts, 152 
nnthrift love, 149 
untread, 82 
unw^earied, 115 
upon more advice, 146 
upon my power, 130 
upon supposed fairness, 

105 
upon the hip, 57, 141 
urge the thing held, 
us, reflexive ? 77 
usance, rate of, 57 
use, 60, 138, 143 
usury, 57 
uttermost, ray, 47 



V 

vailing her high top, 41 
valued against, 145 
vantage, 109 
varnish 'd faces, 80 



vasty wilds, 86 
vendible, not, 45 
venture forth, 40 
Venus' pigeons, 82 
very friends. 111 
via! 67 
vice, 104 

vilely, or vildly ? 53 
villain, 89 
vinegar aspect, 42 
virtue of the ring, 158 



W 

waft her love, 148 
what = what a ? 76 
want-wit sadness makes, 

39 
warranty, I have a, 46 
way of smile, 42 
weeping philosopher, 51 
Weiss's comments, 28, 304 
waste the time, 119 
wealth, for his, 160 
weather, builds in the, 92 
welcome, 111 
well, interrogative force ? 

55 
well to live, 69 
what, 69, 76, 79, 126, 157 
what these Christians are ! 

62 
where thou now, 127 
which, the, 55, 119 
which, or wlio? 85, 139 
which, omitted? 48 
while, the, 65 
wealth, 160 
whiles, we that, 55 
who if he break, 61, 132 
who, inflection of, 50 
who, omitted? 44, 128 
who, for which, 85 
why, so, 99 
wilds, 86 



wild-cat, 81 

wilful stillness entertain, 

44 
wilful youth, like a, 47 
willow in her hand, 148 
will none of thee, 106 
will, \>\n\ on? 50 
will and shall, 81 
wings she flew withal, 97 
wis, I, 93 

wit, hedg'd me by his, 05 
with, persuaded, 114 
with all my heart, 138 
withal, 85, 97, 121, 144 
within his danger, 134 
within the eye of honor, 

46 
witness, producing holy, 

59 
wives = women? 103 
Avolf, who hang'd etc., 132 
won the fleece,"ll2 
worship, your, 58, 69 
would, sense of ? 58 
wracked, 96 
wren, 154 
writ, 77 

wroth, to bear my, 94 
wry-neck'd fife, 80 



yet, 95 

you and I, between, 116 

you a-nd thou, 120 

you were best, 90 

you had pleas'd, 159 

younger, 82 

youag-ey'd cherubins, 151 

yours, dlssyl.? 101 

yourself, use of? 65 

y wis, or I ivis f 93 



Z 



Zeugma, 78 



m 



^J 







